


steady his heart beat

by TheGodWith5Yen



Category: Naruto
Genre: Background Relationships, Domestic Fluff, F/M, Families of Choice, Family, Friendship/Love, Living Together, Marriage of Convenience, Mutual Pining, Oblivious Uzumaki Naruto, Past Relationship(s), Unplanned Pregnancy, Uzumaki Naruto is a Good Friend, Warm and Fuzzy Feelings, naruto is a seals master bc I say so but its like barely mentioned really
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-07-07
Updated: 2020-07-23
Packaged: 2021-03-04 18:35:27
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 4
Words: 26,626
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/25120978
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/TheGodWith5Yen/pseuds/TheGodWith5Yen
Summary: “I’ll be your child’s father.”Hinata’s head jerked in surprise and she opened her mouth, her hand rising to grasp at his wrist. “Naruto! You- that is too much. I can’t, I can’t ask that of you.”Naruto let his thumb caress her high cheekbone, back and forth, refusing to back down. “Hinata, you are my best friend. I couldn’t bear anything bad happening to you, you don’t deserve it. And, anyways, I’m asking you. Let me be the father, let me help you. I don’t want you to feel rejected, not ever again.”
Relationships: Hyuuga Hinata/Uzumaki Naruto
Comments: 33
Kudos: 84





	1. carried each other to hell and back

**Author's Note:**

> I started working on this in the beginning of the year, got really into star wars and put this aside, but looked through it again and was like damn :') I have the first few chapters done and thought it would be nice to post the first! This is definitely a real long project and I love it so much so I hope you all enjoy!!!
> 
> The first chapter title is from "Army of Two" from Carole & Tuesday

Steady, his heart beat as he walked along the chain link fence lining a small playground. Despite his chakra control and his slow steps, he held his arms out from himself as though to keep balance on the small ledge on the top of the fence. The chilling autumn wind attempted to push back at him, but he was steady, steady as a toad that sat on top of a rock among the rushing water of a river. The wind caused his hair to blow back and the baggy arms of his too-big sweatshirt flap and Naruto couldn’t help the small smile that curled at his lips. 

It was quiet. Peaceful. It was the time of night, in this quiet neighborhood that was mostly homes to families- the families that seemed to grow bigger and bigger each and every day, with young ones running about on wobbly feet and mother's with round bellies waddling about- that all was silent and quiet. Naruto relished in the quiet. 

He tilted his chin back and basked in it. 

Which was when he heard it- just a block away, the sniffling sound of someone trying their best to hold back tears but ultimately failing. He could hear voices, slightly raised and tense. Naruto strained his ears slightly and it wasn’t long until he was able to make out one voice- a voice that was usually soothing and calm and quiet that was now full of congestion and cracking. Hinata. 

Once he placed her voice, Naruto jumped down from the fence, shoved his hands into his sweatshirt pockets and made his way over towards where her voice seemed to ring loud in the quiet area. It wasn’t often that Hinata cried, especially in public in the middle of the night. And never like  _ this _ . Her voice rang with despair and desperation- he had never even heard her cry like this for Neji. Worry turned in his chest as he walked forward with a purpose, his feet silent against the road. 

In front of a novelty tea shop, Hinata stood, wiping at her face, watching as whoever she was arguing with walked away from her, back turned, not bothering to look back. Naruto’s eyebrows pulled together, anger flared, swallowing the worry. The figure wore dark clothing and the village's swirl design was sewn onto the back of the shirt in what looked closer to pink than orange or red. Dark curly hair bounced as the figure walked and it clicked-

Ishida Takumi. 

Hinata had been dating Ishida Takumi for about six months. He had hung out with their whole group of friends at restaurants and trained together with them a few times. Ishida Takumi made Hinata blush pink and she would laugh into his shoulder and giggle under her breath and lightly gossip with Sakura and Ino about him. Ishida Takumi had been nothing but polite to Naruto. Naruto even liked the guy well enough and would talk to him when he saw him out and about on the street. 

Now though.

Now.

Now all Naruto could hear was Hinata crying and the way she had been weeping and trying her best to talk to him through it. Now all Naruto wanted to do was catch up to the damn punk, grab him by the scruff of his neck, and get in his face for hurting Hinata- sweet Hinata who had become one of his very best friends in the past years- and walking away without a single glance back at her, without offering to walk her home, without being a good boyfriend. Being a good friend, a good man. Instead, Naruto reached out a hand and placed it on top of Hinata’s head.

“Hinata.” Naruto spoke quietly. His friend wiped at her face and turned towards him, her lips trembling slightly, her eyes rimmed red and puffy, her face flushed. Naruto’s heart pounded in his chest and it took his whole being not to rush towards Ishida Takumi. Nobody hurt his friends. Instead of being rash, Naruto wrapped his arms around Hinata’s shoulder and let her press her face into his shoulder, her hands clutching at the back of his sweater, sobbing. When she pulled away, the space where she had placed her face was wet, but Naruto didn’t mind. 

As they walked, Naruto kept an arm around Hinata’s shoulders, leading them towards the playground he had been walking over just minutes before. Their steps were near silent, the only noise in this neighborhood seeming to be Hinata’s hiccupping breaths. They sat on the swing, Naruto moving back and forth slightly as Hinata simply sat, wiping again at her face. He wasn’t sure if she would talk, some days they would just sit together, not speaking a word, enjoying each other's company. Maybe what she needed at this moment was company. He wouldn’t fault her for it if it was. 

Naruto stared up at the starry night, his eyes glued on the little wedge of silver that the moon was today. As he stared up at the moon, Hinata took a deep breath in and spoke, “I told Takumi-kun I’m pregnant.” Naruto felt his eyes widen and he glanced over at her, watched as a single tear fell down her pale cheek. Suddenly, he understood why her tone had been desperate, why she had been crying so hard, and Naruto felt a flame ignite in his chest. He would never hate someone as much as he hated Ishida Takumi at this moment. “Takumi-kun, he. He said he’s too young, that I should. Should. But- I can’t. I won’t. So he left. What am I going to do?” She gave a large sniff and bit at her bottom lip. “To have a child so young, and unmarried?”

“Kurenai was unmarried when she had Mirai.” He wasn’t sure what to say, but that seemed like something. A part of Naruto wished Sakura was here. She would know how to properly comfort Hinata in this moment.

Hinata shook her head. “That was- that was different. Everyone knew her and Asuma was together, even if they never broadcasted it, and they understood her circumstances. Had Asuma lived, he would have married her like he always wanted to and helped raise their daughter. Plus, they were thirty. I’m not quite twenty yet. The whole village will talk. Unmarried and pregnant. A disgrace. I might even be disowned again for this.” She gave a sudden intake of breath, sharp and wild, her eyes glassy with tears.

And- Naruto could see it. See how the village would talk behind their hands about the Hyuuga head’s eldest daughter becoming pregnant so young and with no man in the picture. They would be endlessly brutal and would never forget about it even when the child grew in age. Even with this new age they were entering, where more and more young women were becoming pregnant and mothering children, it was expected to come hand-in-hand with marriage. There had been an uptake in marriages in these last few years after the war, and no matter how the ninja in the village were able to set aside such matters most of the time, the situation Hinata was in would wreck her image within Konoha. 

Naruto’s hands tightened around the cold metal chain of the swing. He was sure it would leave indents in his palms for a good while with how tight his grip had become. As much as he loved Konoha and would do anything to protect the village, the people- the people could be endlessly ruthless. An idea began to form in Naruto’s mind, bolstered when he glanced over at Hinata’s tear stained face. He planted his feet onto the ground, reached over, and placed his hand on her cheek. 

“I’ll be your child’s father.” 

Hinata’s head jerked in surprise and she opened her mouth, her hand rising to grasp at his wrist. “Naruto! You- that is too much. I can’t, I can’t ask that of you.”

Naruto let his thumb caress her high cheekbone, back and forth, refusing to back down. “Hinata, you are my best friend. I couldn’t bear anything bad happening to you, you don’t deserve it. And, anyways, I’m asking you. Let me be the father, let me help you. I don’t want you to feel rejected, not ever again.”

“But- what if you meet a woman who you want to be with? I couldn’t let myself be selfish if you could be happy with someone.” Her voice shook and she shook her head slightly. The grip her hand had on his wrist loosened somewhat. 

He sighed. In all honesty, he didn’t think that would be anything that would happen. Since the war, there had been a sudden wave of admirers for him. Young women would hang on his arms and give him gifts while they blushed and laughed nervously, and young men would let their hands brush his arms while their faces turned red or they tried to share a meal with him. He had a countless number of people who had confessed their love to him. But none of it felt genuine, and he doubted it ever would. Naruto cared for Hinata. He cared for her and that was enough.

“Let me be there for you.” Naruto insisted. Finally, Hinata let herself lean into his touch, her eyes closed, her lips trembling as she made a small noise and nodded her head. Steady, his heart beat as she accepted him, accepted what he realized was possibly the most unromantic proposal any woman could receive seconds after she had nodded her head. Despite knowing what was to come, Naruto didn’t feel any regret or fear or uncertainty. He would be there for Hinata, be there for the child in her womb, for the rest of his life. They were friends, and Naruto wouldn’t do anything less for her.

Despite how long he had known her, Naruto had never visited Hinata’s home. He couldn’t help but admire the scenery of the Hyuuga compound, itself a small neighborhood. The house Hinata had been raised in was further from the branch family homes, and much larger. It seemed secluded, but beautiful with lush greenery around the home. He couldn’t imagine growing up in a place like this. The awe slowly faded, however, as they drew closer towards Hinata’s home, where her father was. Naruto had failed to think about having to explain to Hyuuga Hiashi that he was fathering his daughter's child, and it made him feel nervous. It was one thing to simply go along with it all and tell people one thing, but to lie to Hinata’s father about something like this? Steady his heart did not beat. 

The day after Naruto promised himself to Hinata, promised to take care of her and the child growing inside of her, they had met up at the little novelty tea shop he had found her in front of the day before. They had traditional seating with plush pale pink and yellow mats to sit on. Naruto had a round pink cup with a cherry blossom design full of green tea while Hinata nursed a bright yellow cup that held peppermint tea. They had gone to the shop together before and it had become their spot- along with Ichiraku’s- and enjoyed the fact that all the teas and baked goods had ridiculous names that often had Hinata giggling in her hand when she read them. There wasn’t many other people around and the radio was raised up loud enough that they felt comfortable to have the conversation they needed to have. 

Hinata explained that she was seven weeks pregnant and had told Ishida Takumi the day after she had learned- the night he had found her weeping as her ex-boyfriend walked away without a glance back. “Will you really be there for me?” Hinata asked as she stared into her cup of peppermint tea, her thumb in her mouth as she chewed at the nail. She had a bad habit of picking at her nails until she ripped them all off. “This isn’t just vouching for me and letting me stay on your couch after we all snuck beer Naruto. This is serious.”

It was serious. It was a lifelong commitment that meant living with her and helping raise her child and marrying her. It was serious, and Naruto had no intention of backing down. Hinata was his best friend, he cared for her, and there was no way he wouldn’t help her. “I won’t leave your side through any of it. I promise you.”

Hinata sighed, her shoulders drooping before she picked up her cup of tea with a smile. “It’s your ninja way, isn’t it?” She teased. Naruto could only laugh and nod his head in agreement. “I could never thank you enough, so I will only say it once. Thank you.” Her eyelashes seemed to glisten in the light, but she closed her eyes and breathed in through her nose, and the moment was gone. Her opalescent eyes held a fierce glimpse in them, battle ready, ready for what came next. 

Now, however, as they entered the Hyuuga household, they were both anxious. Naruto breathed in through his nose and out through his nose before he placed his hand on his friend's shoulder, reassuring. She had told her father beforehand that she had news and had quickly gone to fetch Naruto, who had been waiting for her outside of the compound gates. The whole while, she gripped her hands in front of her. When Naruto set his hand on her shoulder, she glanced at him, smiled, and nodded. 

She led them through the house and towards the eating area, where Hyuuga Hiashi sat, alone, his hands on his knees and his eyes downcast on the steaming teapot in front of him. The man's eyes tracked them as they made their way over towards him, bowed, and sat across the chabudai from him. Hinata was directly in front of him. As they sat, Hiashi finally glanced up, a frown firmly in place. Suddenly, all Naruto could think about was the story Ino told of when she had met Sakura’s parents as her official girlfriend. “Her father stared daggers at me like I corrupted Sakura! It was horrifying! He even brought up children. I felt like I couldn’t even _talk._ I had never been more nervous! Good thing my Sakura was there and so articulate. She began explaining how there are ways couples like us can still have children. Still- it was _soo_ scary!” 

His hands clutched his thighs as he forced his chin up and watched the man that would soon be his father-in-law.

Hinata spoke in a low voice that did not waver, her sentences short and to the point, her eyes locked with her father's own cold gaze. “Father. I learned that I am pregnant. Naruto is the father. I understand my shameful actions and the appearance this situation has put our family in. We fully intend to marry before the week is up to keep the honorable name of Hyuuga out of any criticism.” 

Hiashi nodded his head as his hands moved to pour himself a cup of tea. “I see. Hinata, may you please step out? I would like a word with Uzumaki-kun.” Naruto had only spoken to the man a handful of times, but he had never heard Hyuuga Hiashi be so formal about his name. It caused his spine to tingle and the grip on his thighs to tighten. Hinata gave a small nod and walked off with one last glance towards Naruto, a frown on her face. He wanted to smooth at the lines of her mouth and shift it up into a smile. 

Nothing but silence rang between them until Hiashi blew out a sigh, his shoulders dropping. “I know you're not the father of the child. If Hinata was with you, the whole household would have known.”

It was far from what he had expected the man to say that Naruto opened and closed his mouth twice before he sighed and finally collected his words. “Hinata is one of my closest friends. I couldn’t bear to see her go through any of this alone. The man responsible for putting her in this position won’t step up, but I will. I promise I’ll take care of her and your grandchild.” He bowed his head and his hands untensed, instead he clasped them in his lap.

“I’m glad my daughter has such a dedicated friend.” Hiashi sighed. “Thank you for taking on this responsibility. No man would step up in the way you are. Though, you have always been an extraordinary person I suppose.” The man gave a small chuckle. “When do you two plan to marry?” 

The question felt so abrupt that Naruto’s shoulders nearly flew up to his ears in surprise. He reached up and rubbed at the back of his neck as he thought. They had also briefly spoken about what was yet to come, but they still needed to smooth out their options. “Hopefully by the end of the week, since the sooner it is the better. We need to find a home, though I think we should talk to Kakashi. He would understand the situation and might be able to help us get a house fast. Once we have a house, we’ll go to the family registry office and marry.”

Hiashi nodded and stood up. Naruto heaved a sigh and followed the man out of the room, towards where Hinata waited in the hall, her hands clutched in front of her. She glanced up as they stepped out, the worry slowly seeping away from her shoulders and her face when Naruto gave her a grin. He moved over to stand next to her and lightly nudged her with his elbow before hooking his arm with hers. “Please take care of my daughter and grandchild, Naruto.”

Hiashi smiled, soft and small. His words seemed to make Hinata brighter, and as they left the house, she was smiling and asking what her father had said to him. “I had been scared of what he would say when he asked me to leave, but he seemed… happy.” Her fingers moved back and forth along the crook of his arm, little presses of her fingers that felt reassuring. 

Without much thought, Naruto reached over and tucked a lock of her long hair behind her ear. “He said he knew I didn’t get you pregnant, but he respects that I’m stepping forward when, uh, Ishida won’t. Hey, did your- did your father know you were dating him? Because I know he might not be the best, but your father really cares for you and I think, if he knew…” He didn’t bother finishing his sentence, instead he reached up and scratched at the back of his head, his fingers tugging at the short hairs at the back of his head.

The wind blew and they stepped closer together. Naruto glanced at his friend, whose opalescent eyes watched the ground, her cheeks and nose pink from the chilly air, her feet carefully avoiding stepping on fallen leaves. With a shrug, Naruto watched where he stepped as well, the both of them dodging the crunchy fallen leaves. 

“I didn’t tell my father I was dating. Not yet. I wanted to introduce Takumi-kun to my father, but he was adamant against it. I suppose I should have realized he wasn’t as serious about me as I had thought.” Hinata’s voice shook. Naruto leaned over slightly, letting his head bump against hers, his cheek resting atop her head as they suddenly stopped walking. 

“Well, soon you’ll be my wife,” the words brought a brightness in his chest and he couldn’t help the smile spreading on his lips. Hinata was his best friend. She was his best friend, and he was going to be here for her for the rest of his life. Her husband. “And Ishida will realize the wonderful life he could have had if he was a real man.” Hinata only made a small noise that sounded like a squeak in response. 

The smell of coffee nearly covered up the dog smell in Kakashi’s home, but Naruto had always had a keen sense of smell. It probably did not help that all eight of Kakashi’s ninken had decided to be home at the moment, lounging about around the whole apartment and roughhousing together. The man in question was nursing a steaming cup of dark black coffee, sitting across from Naruto at the table, his mask firmly in place. Naruto was still trying to figure out how much milk and sugar to add to his cup- he wasn’t as fond of the drink as his old sensei was.

Kakashi raised up a hand and discreetly sipped at his coffee. After he set his mask back in place and the coffee cup on the table, he shook his head and sighed. “Don’t you think it’s a little hasty to do this? I know the situation is hard and I understand how people behave, but this is a little foolish even for you Naruto.”

And- it was all a little fast, but the moment he understood why Hinata had been crying so hard, Naruto  _ knew _ . He knew what he should do to keep his friend out of a difficult situation she didn’t need to be in. Nobody deserved that kind of treatment, to be hated and looked down on for circumstances out of your control. It made Naruto’s blood boil to think about Hinata- strong, beautiful, wonderful Hinata- to go through any of that. She deserved happiness. He knew how Kakashi could question his decision, but Naruto wasn’t stupid. He wasn’t. He knew that marrying Hinata and caring for her child would be a lifelong commitment. But, in all honesty, it seemed more like a gift than a burden. 

Naruto sighed and shook his head as he added another spoonful of sugar into his cup. “When she told her boyfriend- her ex-boyfriend- that she was pregnant, he walked away and didn’t care about how people would view her. And she was crying, not because she would have to raise a child alone, not because she loved him so much, but because she could see the future where people shunned this poor child because she wasn’t married. Where they would spit on her family name. It may seem pretty fast to you and others, not thought out, but it’s all I’ve thought about since I found out she was pregnant, and I’m not going to leave her. Maybe people will know I’m not the father, maybe not, but I’ll be there for her and the child.”

Kakashi sighed as he tapped a finger against his coffee cup. “Well, it’s your choice, and I trust you. Ah, people can truly be cruel if you don’t fit their ideals.” His eyes drifted towards the living room, watching as his ninken played tug-of-war with an old sock. Naruto could only guess what the man was thinking about- maybe how his father had been shunned by the village, maybe how Naruto had been treated when he was young, maybe how he had to stand up and defend Sakura to people who would spit on her ever since she became open about loving women, maybe how he himself was in a relationship with two men. The people of the village could indeed be cruel, with their conservative ideals and heavy voices. 

“Use the Hatake residence.” 

Naruto blinked and shook his head. “Kakashi, that’s yours!” He knew it was true that Kakashi did not want to return to that house, that he had made this his home with Iruka and Gai, but it was still  _ his _ , and it didn’t sit right in Naruto’s stomach if he just took it. His current home was big enough and all, but what if Kakashi ever wanted to move back in? 

“I don’t live there, Naruto. I won’t live there again, not when I live here. Gai and Iruka live here, and it has enough rooms for when you and all our other precious students come for a visit. It’s  _ fine  _ Naruto. The Hatake residence has too much baggage for me, but you can rebuild it as the Uzumaki home. Hmm. Do me a favor and get the old place off my hands.” Kakashi waved a hand in front of his face and shrugged his shoulders. His eyes were shining and serious. 

After a few minutes of silently staring at each other, Naruto sighed and relented. “Okay! Okay. Thank you Kakashi.” 

The man’s eyes closed, wrinkling in the corners in an obvious smile. “Good, good. If you didn’t agree now, then I would have gotten Iruka to talk to you, and he’s endlessly ruthless.” 

Naruto laughed, knowing that Iruka  _ would _ have found a way to lecture Naruto until he agreed to take Kakashi’s unused home. After a moment, he sobered up, his hands tapping at the table before he rubbed at the back of his neck. “How- do you think Iruka would understand? I know he wants me to grow up and learn more about myself and find love, but that doesn’t feel real. Hinata, she’s one of my best friends, and maybe we don’t love each other like  _ that _ , but it feels  _ good _ . It feels right. I don’t know.” He dropped his hand and took a sip of his coffee, cold and sweet, his stomach suddenly feeling unsettled. He didn’t fully understand the emotions rolling through him, he wasn’t sure what it all meant. All he knew was that Hinata had looked at him with tears in her eyes and lingering on her cheeks, and how all he could think about was  _ protecting  _ her and keeping her close. 

“Maa, well, you and Hinata-chan have been pretty close these past few years. Anyways, Iruka would find it honorable. It’s the type of situation he would put himself in. You two are too generous.” Kakashi chuckled and rolled his eyes, as though he didn’t enjoy the generosity. They spoke for a while longer, discussing Naruto taking the house under his care, which soon turned to how Naruto had discreetly bought some books about pregnancy from Sakura, and how Naruto had taken to holding peppermints in his pockets since they helped Hinata whenever she began to have a bout of morning sickness. Kakashi watched Naruto talk with a sparkle in his eyes, his chin resting on his hand, his eyes crinkled slightly in a smile. 

Eventually, Gai and Iruka announced themselves as they arrived at the house, with a loud “we’re home” that Kakashi quickly answered to. The man seemed to perk up now that his boyfriends were home, his shoulders much more relaxed, the expression around his eyes decidedly soft. The man was a sap, through and through, no matter how he tried to behave. Iruka grinned widely when he caught sight of Naruto, quickly striding over to wrap him in a hug, warm and tight and familiar. 

“Naruto! What a pleasant surprise!” Iruka chuckled as he pulled back and moved to sit in the chair next to Kakashi. “What brings you over?”

Gai lifted himself out of his wheelchair, his hands braced against the table, and shifted onto the chair next to Naruto. His grin was large and excited when he settled himself, and he gratefully accepted Naruto’s cup of coffee. Naruto and Kakashi both watched in interest as the man gulped the coffee. “This flavor,” Gai frowned as he pulled the cup back from his mouth and shared a look with Iruka, who was struggling not to smile, “is very- youthful.”

“Here.” Kakashi reached over the table and poured some of his own coffee into the cup. “I’m giving Naruto the Hatake residence.” Both Iruka and Gai glanced over at the man, who casually lifted his knee up and slung his arm over it. 

“I know we’ve discussed it before, but I didn’t think you would so soon.” Iruka scratched at the long scar along his nose. The small part of resistance left in Naruto’s chest melted- the offer was not spur of the moment, like how Kakashi made it seem. “I thought you wanted to wait until Naruto was starting a family?” Heat pushed along Naruto’s chest, up into his throat, uninvited and full of warmth, of happiness, of wanting to wrap his arms around his old sensei who cared for him so much. 

Kakashi breathed in, a sound that normally wouldn’t feel like much, but sounded loud and shaky and full of meaning, so when he said, “Naruto and Hinata are marrying and starting a family,” Iruka and Gai seemed to have already braced themselves for news. Emotions Naruto couldn’t quite decipher filled both of their faces. 

“I saw Hinata-chan with Takumi-kun the other day.” Gai said, his hand rubbing at his jaw as he stared into his coffee. 

Feeling the sudden urge to defend himself, Naruto frowned. His hand moved to the back of his neck, pulling at the hair back there as he tried to gather his words. “Ishida broke up with Hinata when she told him she was pregnant with their child. I couldn’t- I can’t leave her. You of all people know how the village people can be. They shun and hate and spread gossip and can run you down if you are anyway different and in no way will I let Hinata and her child go through the same thing. I know that people will still talk, but better than the alternative.” He felt as a hair snapped under his tight grip. He pulled his hand back and placed it on the table, his knuckles rubbing at the edge in his agitation. 

A hand placed itself on his shoulder, warm and large and tight. “I apologize Naruto-kun. I shouldn’t have assumed what I initially did of you. You have always been a phenomenal young man, and to assume you would be otherwise is rude of me.” Gai’s frown was deep and his eyebrows were so close together in his distraught they looked like one, and his eyes began to fill with tears. 

Naruto raised a hand and waved it about. “It’s alright! I know you care about Hinata and her wellbeing.” After Neji’s death, Gai had a self-appointed mission to look after his cousin. Naruto knew that they regularly met up to visit the memorial stone and Neji’s individual gravestone. Naruto had visited Iruka plenty of times to see Gai come home, grinning and giddy, with a cake made by Hinata in his lap. He was immeasurably fond of her. Who couldn’t be? She was calm and gentle and sweet and charming. 

His thoughts were cut off as Iruka slapped a hand against the table, startling him enough to jump slightly. “I always knew Takumi-kun could be a bit selfish, but I never thought he would do something like this! And to sweet Hinata! I should give him the more boring missions when I see him next.” 

Kakashi raised his hand as though he was in a classroom and carefully cleared his throat. “Um, Iruka, my dear, I think you shouldn’t say stuff like that in front of the Hokage. Plausible deniability and all.” Gai chuckled and Iruka sighed and placed a hand on his cheek as he shook his head. 

“Sure, sure.” Iruka dismissed Kakashi’s words with a roll of his eyes. He knew as well as Naruto did that Ishida himself would not confront the Hokage if he got shitty missions. He was a decent enough shinobi, but he didn’t have the sort of guts to do something like that. “I don’t know how I feel about him now. No real shinobi- no real man- should ever turn their back on someone they care about. How can anyone trust him to watch their backs if he didn’t even stick it out with Hinata. Well, good thing you’re such a dedicated  _ friend  _ Naruto.” He reached over and stole a sip of Kakashi’s coffee, who mournfully watched his coffee be drained away. “We’ll be sure to show up to the family registry office and to help you two move into the house.”

It seemed like no time had passed before Naruto found himself wearing a borrowed kimono from Iruka. It was thick and black and had smelled a little like dust when Iruka had pulled it out of the box, and Naruto had immediately known how precious and old this clothing was. It had to be his father's kimono, the one Umino Ikkaku had worn on his own wedding day. Naruto had felt his eyes well up with tears and he had clung to Iruka for so long it felt like he was separating from home when they finally pulled away from each other. 

He stood outside of the family registry office, with Iruka fussing over him, his eyes already shining. It was early morning, the sun not yet peeking out from the horizon. They had woken up early in the morning, getting ready, everybody had agreed it would be best to marry right when the office opened and before most of the village woke up. Kakashi had taken it upon himself to take photos, and Gai had long ago given up trying not to cry, tears quietly falling from his eyes as he watched Naruto. It felt so real. 

Naruto kept finding himself placing his hand on the katabori-netsuke hanging from his kimono’s front. It was carved in the shape of a fat rabbit, curled in on itself, lying on a bed of flowers. It was intricate and beautiful, and had been a gift from Hiashi. Inside was his gift to Hinata- to solidify their vows to one another. They had both agreed that they wanted to have  _ something _ that represented their vows. Even if this wasn’t a traditional marriage, they were still friends, and they still wanted some semblance of truth to be exchanged between them. 

They had both thought rings wouldn’t do well with them, though it had surprised Naruto when Hinata had suggested they get each other earrings. It was simple and unconventional, but it would be enough for them to know what it meant. That it was Naruto’s vow to stay with her and her child. 

Naruto had only gotten his ear pierced a few months back while a little tipsy off of beer that Choji had bought for them all. Hinata had giggled and held his hand when he had sat on the chair, the others standing to the side laughing and causing the tattoo artist- a large menacing looking man who everyone knew had to be ex-yakuza considering the lines of tattoos along his bulging arms- to scowl at them as he pressed the needle through Naruto’s ear. He had gotten a helix piercing, one single piercing at the rim of his ear, and it hadn't been as big of a deal as his drunken friends made it seem. Though, he did have to be careful or else his healing would kick in and cause the piercing to close. 

He hoped Hinata liked the earrings he had bought for her. 

Footsteps alerted them all that the Hyuugas were coming. Naruto straightened up, watching as Hinata, flanked by Hiashi and Hanabi, walked down the path towards the office, seemingly fussing over her little sister as she moved to fix the younger girl's hair. Hanabi said something that caused Hinata to glance away from her sister and instead towards where Naruto stood waiting. Naruto’s chest heated up and his throat felt dry and he wondered if he didn’t know any better he would be wondering if he was developing a cold from being up for so long. 

Hinata looked beautiful. She was always beautiful, but Naruto couldn’t help but admire her even more as she walked up, her pale cheeks flushed red, her eyes looking right at him, seeing right into him, into his soul, into his very being, and all Naruto could do was smile at her shyly as he watched her. Her hair was up. Instead of a white uchikake kimono, she was wearing a deep red uchikake that had bright and colorful flower designs. Someone had tied a katabori-netsuke to her kimono, the carving bumping and swinging against her thigh as she walked forward, and as she moved closer Naruto could make out that it was a rabbit like the one Hiashi had gifted him. It must have been a set of some kind.

When Hinata stopped in front of him, Naruto held out his arm for her to grab. Her delicate hand settled on the crook of his elbow, and together they entered the family registry office. His heart seemed to beat too fast in his chest as they walked together, and as the administrator fetched the proper paperwork, and as he watched Hinata sign her name to become an  _ Uzumaki _ , and as they turned to each other after the paperwork was finished with. 

Hinata’s hands shook as she opened the katabori-netsuke hanging from her kimono. She took a deep breath and her hands stilled slightly as she carefully removed the single earring she had bought for Naruto. It was silver and slightly bent, and as Hinata held it out, it took him a moment to realize it was a  _ moon _ . A crescent moon, like the very one he had stared at as they sat on the swings earlier in the week. 

“I’m not exactly sure what to say.” Hinata’s voice was shaky, but otherwise low and gentle and ringing as always. Naruto placed a hand on her right wrist, his arm obscuring the silver moon earring cupped in her hands. “All my life, I’ve seen you. I’ve seen you alone, on a swing, watching as everyone else had family and parents around them. You had seen me, on that swing set, and you promised yourself to me. Promised a life, a family. I’m happy I will be the one to give this gift to you.” She reached over, and Naruto bowed his head down, watching how she stood slightly up on the tip of her toes as her warm hands moved to change out the hoop earring he was wearing and clasp the moon she had gotten into his ear. As she moved back and Naruto stood up straight, her hand dropped to his shoulder, and they shared a smile. 

A breath. 

Steady, steady, his heart beat as he felt the warmth of her hand on his shoulder. Naruto carefully opened up the katabori-netsuke Hiashi had gifted him and placed the earrings he had bought her into his hands. They were small, round and gold, shaped like the sun. Naruto laughed when Hinata leaned forward to look at the earrings. “It’s almost like we planned it!” He leaned forward, carefully pulled a small lock of her silky black hair behind her ear as he worked on clasping the first earring into place. He had thought over and over what he would tell her, and all the nerves he had felt before seemed to dissipate as he carefully moved the earring into her ear. 

“Sometimes, I look at you, and see this woman who is so strong and gentle and wonderful, and you seem to shine so bright like the sun- like your name- that it’s like I can’t quite look at you. I’ve heard people say you’re like the moon, and in a way you are. You’re calm and sweet and contained. But, to me you’re a sun. People don’t realize that they’re in your gravitation until they look up and see your shining smile. I know that’s how it was for me, when we would share a cup of tea or train together or go by Ichiraku’s. I know you don’t need me, that you’re one of the strongest people I’ve met, but I’m glad you’ve let me stay by your side, because that’s where I like to be.” The second earring clasped in place and Naruto leaned back, grinning. 

Wet eyes met his. Her arms wrapped around his shoulders and they embraced each other, newly married, friends about to step forward into a life together. When they pulled apart from one another, they went towards their family, most of whom all looked as though they were attempting not to cry too much. Naruto found himself being jostled and hugged and when he met Hinata’s opalescent eyes as their families- family, they were now one family- walked out of the family registry office, out into the morning.

The morning sun hit the gold of Hinata’s earrings, causing her to shine. She looked unreal. Naruto's breath seemed to stick in his chest before she met his eyes and she smiled, slow and secret and shy, and he grinned back at her. Naruto opened up his katabori-netsuke and pulled out a peppermint candy. He walked up to Hinata and wrapped an arm around her shoulders, dropping his head down slightly as he smiled at her. 

“Here.” He held up the peppermint. 

Hinata grinned at him and gratefully took it. “My sister made eggs to eat while getting ready. I spent nearly half an hour vomiting into a bucket as everyone tied me up.” Her cheeks were pink, but she was still smiling, and Naruto couldn’t help but laugh. “Thank you, Naruto. I know I said I’ll stop thanking you, but every day… every day I feel more and more- happy.” 

Naruto pressed her close to his side and let his head drop onto hers as they walked.


	2. days like this I forget my darkness and remember your light

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I said screw it I want to post the second chapter <3 I hope you guys enjoy <3
> 
> chapter title from "Your Light" by The Big Moon

Uzumaki. 

His fingers traced over the name etched into the metal nameplate. At the apartment he had lived in for years, alone and unwatched, he had his own nameplate that he had made himself. Naruto had found a wooden plank behind a shop and had used a kunai to carve his name into it, shaky and ungraceful characters that had momentarily made him happy as he gazed at it. He had even hung it up and would smile at it whenever he came home. And- here this was. His. Uzumaki. 

Naruto shoved his hands in his pockets and stepped back, admiring the silver nameplate with a grin before he walked back over to the house. Hinata was sitting on the couch, crossed legged on the couch, reading over a scroll from the large pile she had been sorting through that she had brought from the Hyuuga house. When Naruto entered the house, he slipped off his sandals and moved to sit next to her, watching how her eyebrows scrunched close together in concentration as she read. Hinata reached up, twisting her sun earrings around as she sighed and glanced up towards Naruto. 

“Hi.” She smiled as she set aside the scroll.

Naruto couldn’t help but grin back at her, his fingers tapping on his knees as he watched her pull her long hair over her shoulder. “Hey. How do you feel this morning?” It wasn’t often, but there were times throughout the day that Hinata would turn a sickly pale color and rush towards the bathroom or the sink, breathing deeply and heavy as she struggled through the wave of sickness. Naruto tried his best to keep away from foods he knew triggered her morning sickness, but Hinata had assured him that sometimes it was simply the thought of food that would make her sick. Being a woman sounded hard. 

Hinata gave a small chuckle. “Good. I ate some bread with jam. Where did you say you got it from? It’s absolutely delicious.”

The jam had been a gift from a local seller who ran a small shop- the old woman sold jam and jellies, butter and cheese from the goat that napped by her feet behind the counter, and freshly baked bread and treats that Naruto liked to buy early in the morning. There was a much larger bakery that Naruto knew most of his friends frequented, but he preferred Old Lady Kinoko’s little shop and her easy going company. Old Lady Kinoko had heard a rumor that Naruto was in a relationship the day before and had given him a whole basket of treats, free of charge. “It’s a little shop, right off of the marketplace? I’ll have to take you with me one of these mornings. Though, how are you with goats?” 

“Goats?” Hinata raised a single eyebrow, her eyes shining and mouth turned up in a smile. When Naruto nodded, she hummed in thought. “The last time I was near a goat was during a genin mission. They’re pretty cute. Why, will there be goats at the shop? Or are you trying to fill up our yard space with goats?” 

“Old Lady Kinoko keeps a goat in the shop,” Naruto said with a grin, though now that she had mentioned it, the thought of goats living in their yard sounded fun. “Man, genin missions sure were something huh? You know Kakashi asked me to be a jounin-sensei for the next batch of kids graduating from the academy, though I should probably tell him I won’t be able to do it. The baby will be about two months old when the genin teams get together.” When Kakashi had asked Naruto to take on a genin team, he had been excited at the thought- he loved working with the children of the village and it would be a nice step forward towards learning more about how to be a proper shinobi for Konoha. He could just push back at becoming a jounin-sensei for a bit, there was no way he’d leave Hinata all alone in caring for the child. They were in this together, married, this was part of why he had asked to be there for her. 

Hinata opened her mouth and closed it again before shaking her head. “Naruto! You don’t have to do that! The- the baby isn’t yours, you don’t have to worry.”

A weight settled in his stomach and he frowned, glancing down at where her hand was fiddling with the scroll she had set aside. His own hand moved to trace the slanted curve of his earring, the moon that Hinata had gifted him. “The child you’re carrying isn’t mine, but I vowed to take care of you both. The moment I asked you wasn’t just to keep the village eyes away from a bad circumstance, it was to help you with this responsibility. Maybe it’s not entirely true, but I  _ am  _ your husband. We’re friends. I guess if you don’t want to help, I’ll give you all the space I can, but I  _ want _ to be here for you.” 

A warm hand set itself on his cheek. Naruto leaned into Hinata’s touch, enjoying the feel of the rough calluses on her hands and how her long nails scratched lightly at his cheek. “Why are you so good? This-” But she cut herself off. Naruto glanced up. Tears shone in her opalescent eyes and her pink lips trembled. He reached up, letting himself into an urge he had felt whenever they sat across from each other at a tea shop or sat next to each other, shoulders brushing, while eating bowls of ramen. He let his hand run through her long, silky hair. “Naruto…”

“Hmm?” 

It was as though this was all there was in the world. Naruto could find himself becoming lost in this home with the Uzumaki name attached to the front gate and a picture of him and Hinata in their wedding outfits as the morning sun highlighted their hair and his arm slung over her shoulders, sitting on the table in the living room. With the mundane actions of preparing breakfast for two and cleaning up spare rooms to decorate and sit down and watch the koi fish dance around each other in the pond late at night as they spoke in quiet voices. Just him and her. 

“Everybody talks about you as though you’re the sun,” Hinata began, soft and slow, her thumb moving back and forth in a caress against his cheek. Naruto couldn’t breathe. “But, you’re like a moon. You shine in the darkness and no one could ever dream about turning away.” And- Naruto didn’t completely understand what she meant, or why she said it, but he worked hard to let his breath in and out, in and out, of his nose and watched as her eyes began to clear up. 

It was a day before October tenth that their friends learned they had married- about three weeks since they had gone to the family registry office and moved in together. It was a surprise that no one had found out earlier, but the (former) Hatake residence was far from other homes and, since it was widely known to be abandoned, it wasn’t frequented by most unless it was a child deliberately looking for a scare. It made sense that the only people to know- besides their family and the workers in the family registry office that kept more secrets than ANBU- was Shino and Kiba, who Hinata had told a few days after their marriage to explain why she was being pulled off of the active duty roster. 

The ninth was a day of remembrance before the celebration and festival the very next day. The village was subdued as droves of people visited family graves and the memorial stone. Naruto accompanied Hinata and her family to Neji’s grave, paying respects with them and placing flowers in front of his grave. The headstone of Neji’s grave had become endlessly familiar in the last three years- the curve of the characters of his name and the dates of birth and death immortalized, a line of poetry that Naruto knew the young man had been fond of underneath it all. 

Hinata held onto his arm as they left the cemetery, the two of them departing from Hiashi and Hanabi who were heading back home. They spoke quietly about Neji as they moved through the village. Despite the rough patch they had gone through as children, Hinata had been fond of her older cousin, especially when Neji had reconciled with the Hyuuga name and they both began to change towards the branch families treatment.

“One time I had caught him reading Jiraiya-sama’s books.” Hinata laughed as her cheeks flushed red. “It was so embarrassing! He threw the book across the room and tried to act normal, but we both got too flustered and I ended up leaving the house and spent the day with Kiba and Akamaru. When I got home later, Neji tried to explain  _ why  _ he was reading it, though I think he only traumatized us both even further.”

Naruto laughed, thinking about serious Neji with a face as deeply flushed as Hinata while reading one of Ero-sennin’s books. It was ridiculous. It was heartening to hear stories of an old friend he had cared about, something he had never known about someone he had felt close to from someone who had been closer to him than most others. From Hinata, who had seen him as an older brother. “Neji tried to act all cool, but he really was a dork underneath it all, huh?” 

Hinata’s chuckle was soft and her blush was dark along his cheeks. “He was in love with  _ Lee _ . Of course he was a dork in heart.” Hinata’s fingers tightened around the crook of his arm as she pressed closer to him, avoiding a large group of people heading in the opposite direction. 

In love with Lee. Neji. Naruto had never known that. It made his heart clench, wondering if Lee had ever had any clue how his once best friend had felt for him. “I didn’t know that,” Was all he could find himself to say. He hadn't known. He had never been very good at realizing other people’s romantic feelings. Sakura said it was a problem, especially in the past few years since he would receive so many invites on dates he hadn't realized were dates until afterwards.

A glance at Hinata showed him a sad smile. She reached over with her free hand and pulled at his earlobe, playful, wordlessly telling him to cheer up. “I think most of our friends could tell. Lee knew, though he’s told me, well.” She chewed her bottom lip before sighing, her shoulders untensing as she decided to speak on. “I don’t enjoy gossip, but I suppose you  _ are _ my husband, and it isn’t like you will tell anyone else about this. Lee told me that he and Neji had shared a few kisses, but never anything more.”

“It must be painful, to be so close to the person you love, but not able to completely have them.” Naruto had never been in love with anyone- despite his claims when he was younger about how he had felt towards Sakura, that was childish jealousy- but he was sure that the pain that Lee had gone through after the death of the man he loved was unparalleled. 

Hinata hummed and heaved a sigh. “It is.”

A rush of something raw and sharp seemed to move through Naruto’s chest at Hinata’s words, at the way her hand loosened in his arm, at the soft longing in her voice. All these weeks, Naruto had been thinking the worst of Ishida Takumi, of the way he had hurt her, but he hadn't stopped to wonder if there was still a part of her that cared for him.  _ Loved _ him. They had been together for half a year- that was long enough to care for someone deeply. Not to mention they had- they had been  _ together _ . Sure, Ishida clearly hadn't felt the way Hinata had felt towards him on that last day, but they had been in a relationship for a reason. Did Hinata miss him? Did she wish that he had loved her the way she had him, that she had never been forced into this situation that Naruto willingly stepped into. The thought made his chest ache in a way he didn’t understand. 

All he wanted to do was ask if she was still in love with Ishida; all he wanted to do was change the subject so he didn’t have to hear the yearning in her gentle voice. 

Naruto reached over to pull at the hair at the back of his neck, his nails scratching hard at his neck as he mulled over the words that threatened to choke him. He breathed in. “The others must be waiting for us,” he found himself saying. They had agreed to meet up near Ichiraku’s, which was unfortunately closed for the day for both the remembrance and to prepare for the festivities the next day. Hinata hummed in agreement. He wished she would say something more, but they simply walked together in silence as they made their way to meet up with their friends.

When they found their friends, Hinata let go of his arm as she moved to hug Sakura and Ino, the two women fussing over her as they always did when they saw Hinata and asking how her morning was. Naruto sighed and moved towards where Shikamaru was standing to the side smoking a cigarette as he listened to Lee and Choji talk animatedly about something or the other. Naruto held out a hand, which caused Shikamaru to sigh dramatically, but he handed over the cigarette anyways. They had smoked together quite a few times, so Shikamaru obviously hadn't seen it coming when Naruto leaned over and snuffed out the cigarette underneath his sandal. 

“Hey! What the hell Naruto?” Shikamaru yelled out as he watched Naruto throw the cigarette into a nearby trash bin. Their friends watched them curiously, a few of them laughing and jeering at Shikamaru, as they always did when it came to his bad habit.

Naruto simply grinned and stuck his tongue out his friend. “There are ladies around Shikamaru! Ladies!” No way was he going to let Shikamaru smoke openly around Hinata. Naruto knew that Shikamaru mostly smoked when he was feeling uneasy and stressed- much too often, in all honesty- but they were all together, so he was hopeful that he could raise his spirits. They all had their own underground mission anyways to find him a better coping mechanism, though nothing stuck like his smoking habit. 

Shikamaru snorted as he shoved his hands in his pockets. “Ladies? The only lady I see around here is Hinata.” His words caused Sakura, Ino, and Tenten to tense up and yell at him while Hinata pressed a hand to her mouth, eyes shining and crinkled slightly on the side, obviously trying her best not to laugh outright. As Sakura broke out of Lee’s grip and wrapped her arms around Shikamaru in a chokehold, he sighed and declared while wheezing, “I was joking, I was joking! God, woman!” 

The start of their day together had them in high spirits, teasing each other as they walked through the village, reminiscing and enjoying the moment. It was sheer dumb luck and the strength of all of the lands shinobi that all of them were still alive and kicking to be here, three years after the war. They bought crappy tea in a can from one of the few shops open and laughed until tea burst from Ino’s nose and arm wrestled over an unsteady picnic table in a small neighborhood park. 

Hinata’s hand gripped his own tightly, her pink lips twisted in a smirk as she locked eyes with them. As Sakura yelled “start” Naruto found himself distracted by the confidence in her eyes, he wavered slightly, his hand dropping low before he bit his lip and pushed back. He was half aware of their friends yelling and cheering and Choji acting as a narrator- “and Naruto is pushing back, will the Hero of the Hidden Leaf be able to win over this foe?”- his mind preoccupied in the feel of Hinata’s hand in his and he suddenly thought again of how she had whispered “ _ it is _ ” and how she must be wanting to be with the one person not here with them. He pressed back against Hinata’s hand. He watched how her eyebrows scrunched together and the way she grimaced and added pressure to her grip and  _ pushed- _

His hand fell to the table and all he could do was think about how wonderful she was, how he wanted her to be nothing but happy.

His mind was still on her, watching how she grinned in triumph and raised up an arm to show off her well-muscled arms, when a body dropped against him, arms wrapping around his neck and a chin resting uncomfortably on his shoulder, digging into the meat between his bones. Kiba hummed as he followed Naruto’s gaze, his voice rattling in his bones, similar to the times when Kurama decided to speak up without warning. “When are you going to tell everyone?” Naruto turned to get a good look at his friend- at his sharp eyes and the way they bore into his. Kiba’s words seemed to catch Choji’s attention, the man turning towards them with a frown, loudly asking what Kiba was talking about. 

And- it wasn’t like they were keeping it a  _ secret _ . They weren’t. They were married and living together and Naruto was going to be there for her for- ever. Forever. Naruto shrugged his shoulders and simply said, “I moved to the Hatake house. Or- well. It’s Uzumaki now.” He could see as Hinata shifted slightly, her thumb worrying at her pink lips, uncertainty in her eyes. “It would be nice to hang out there, actually,” Naruto began, giving Hinata an opportunity to speak, “if you’d all like?”

There was a chorus of agreement and interest and Kiba grumbling next to his ear despite the obvious fact that he wanted to see the house as well, but all that didn't matter. Naruto watched as Hinata pressed a hand to her cheek, her head tilted to the side, before she sighed and smiled. With her permission, Naruto stood up and grinned at his friends, beginning to lead the way towards the house, his friends quietly following him. Hinata moved away from Sakura and Lee, and fell into step with Naruto. Without much thought, Naruto let his arm wrap around her shoulders as they walked forward, his fingers twirling a lock of her hair around.

“Are you ready?” He asked softly. 

Hinata breathed out, her eyes closed, her dark eyelashes seeming to shine slightly against the sudden burst of light above, the clouds in the sky shifting about enough to expose the light upon her. It reminded him of the words he had said at their small wedding- how she was so bright it was hard to look at her properly sometimes. He glanced away and instead watched their surroundings- how the branches shook with the slight winds, the gradient leaves with only a days worth of will to stay put on the branches rustling and creating the familiar song of the village that Naruto would sit and listen to as a child, the twittering of the birds and the large cawing of crows that tended to prowl around the marketplace.

“Yes.” She answered, her voice breathless.

And- Naruto grinned down at her, wishing he could remember this moment for the rest of his life, how she had that small smile that caused his chest to burst with care, how her fingers fiddled together slightly before she held them tightly together in front of her, how her sun earrings gleamed with the sun hitting her so perfectly. She was so bright. Naruto was so glad he had her as a friend. 

When they were in front of their house, they stopped as Shikamaru grinned and knocked his knuckles against the metal nameplate. “Yo, this is pretty nice. You know, the one at my place is getting pretty old. Where’d you get this Naruto?”

Naruto’s fingers fiddled with a lock of Hinata’s hair as he thought, his eyebrows scrunching together, his body leaning further into Hinata. “Ah. Iruka bought it for me and I can’t remember where he got it, sorry. I’m seeing him soon to talk about the school and orphanage reforms, so I’ll ask him for you if you’d like.” 

“Naruto, you’re so  _ domestic _ now!” Ino cried out, her hand fanning at her face as she grinned wickedly. “It’s so sweet! Now all you need is to lock down a girl to keep this domesticity going! Right, Hinata-chan?” Her eyes were glued to where Naruto was playing with Hinata’s hair. He pulled his arm away from Hinata as he walked towards their home, not quite wanting to answer Ino. She had always been an instigator at heart no matter how she tried to claim otherwise, and it unsettled him as she proceeded to ask Hinata about Ishida Takumi. 

“We broke up a while back,” Hinata answered Ino, her voice clear and impactful. “Let’s head inside, hm?” She was soon standing next to Naruto as he opened the front door, walking in after him as their friends came after them, laughing and asking Naruto questions that he answered. They shoved off their shoes and, at the same moment, Naruto and Hinata quietly called out “I’m home,” loud enough for the others to hear as they carefully lined up their shoes along the entryway. 

Naruto stepped into the living room- where the soft blue sofa sat, secondhand from Iruka, across from the boxy television that sat on top of the wooden television stand full of cds and the small radio that he would move into the kitchen when he or Hinata were cooking or in the tea room, where a framed photo of him and Hinata sat, innocent and full of meaning. It was them as they were walking away from the family registry office, Naruto’s arm slung over Hinata’s shoulders, her face turned towards him enough that the camera had captured the smile on her face. Hinata moved to stand next to him, a nervous smile on her lips as their friends entered the living room. Her hands moved up to her mouth and back in front of her as their friends moved towards the couch. 

Kiba pointed towards the picture frame with a grin, “You guys have any more wedding photos?” His question caused their friends to pause for a second, his question processing in their minds, before they burst out-

“WEDDING?” Ino screeched out, her eyes wide enough that Naruto was worried her eyes would just- pop out. Naruto had seen enough eyes get pulled out of someone for that to feel like a legitimate worry, no matter how much he mentioned it to Sasuke and Sakura only earned him a laugh and a half serious reassurance. 

“Oh my god,” Shikamaru groaned out, his head thrown back, looking as though he aged twenty years. 

“Wow! The passionate throes of youth! This is-” Lee cut himself off, his eyes staring blankly at the picture frame and his mouth opening and closing before settling on, “wow.”

“Congratulations,” was the monotone, clear voice that broke over the mild chaos. Sai looked slightly uncomfortable when most of the others turned to him with incredulous looks. He ignored their friends and stepped forward to give Naruto and Hinata a painfully awkward hug. He was much too stiff and didn’t know where to place his hands, but it was nothing but endearing how he  _ tried _ . 

Naruto grinned at his friend, at the young man who was uncomfortable in social situations but tried his best anyways, at the way his pale lips fought not to curl into a frown as he pulled back from the hug he gave Naruto. “Thanks Sai. That means a lot. We haven’t really told anyone but our families, but it’s been a few weeks so we figured we would tell you guys. We do have more photos, let me get them! There-” He moved towards the television stand, where Naruto had stuck the photo album on a few nights before. It was thick and made out of brown leather, with little engravings carved along it- shapes of deer and rabbits and plants along the edges, creating a heart shape where the middle was bare of any carving. He had found it at a shop and instantly bought it since they had a whole pile of pictures from Kakashi sitting on a shelf. 

“I can’t believe you two secretly got married.” Choji muttered as they crowded around each other to have a glance at the photo album’s contents. A lot of the pictures were a bit blurry, but Naruto found that endearing and lively. He simply loved owning photos- he had begun to take as many pictures of the people he loved after the war, his own photo album was full of pictures like Iruka hunched over a table with a pencil stuck in his hair, Kakashi asleep with Pakkun on his chest, Hinata with bowls of ramen in front of her and a soft grin on her face and with her mouth open in laughter, Sakura lying on top of grass with her eyes closed after training, Shikamaru with his arms around Choji’s shoulders as he pressed a kiss to the other man's cheek while tipsy off of beer their older friends had bought for them, Sasuke with a playful gleam in his eye as he held up a handful of cards, quite a bit from when Naruto, Lee, and Shikamaru had gone to Suna for a few weeks that showed Gaara tending to his various plants. He had so many photos, and he planned to fill the one in his hands with so much more. Of him and Hinata and the child growing inside of her.

Shikamaru tapped on a picture, where Naruto’s head was bowed and Hinata’s face was full of concentration as she clasped his earring to his ear. The angle wasn’t quite right to make out what she was doing, so Naruto expected the question of, “What’s this?”

Naruto gestured towards his right ear, where his earring was. “Wedding earring.” 

Kiba gave a short laugh, throwing his head back against Shino’s shoulder as he did so. “Did you come up with that or Hinata? It’s so dorky, I can’t tell who could have made  _ that _ up. Wedding earrings.” 

Hinata hummed indignantly from where she stood on the outskirts of their misshapen circle. “It’s not dorky Kiba, it’s  _ practical _ and a play on words. They’re our wedding earrings.” She raised up a pale hand to twist at her own earring with a small smile. This was a long going playful argument between the two of them- Kiba insisted that Hinata was dorky, and she shot back that everything she did was practical. Naruto couldn’t help but grin at her silly, over the top professional accent. She  _ was _ a dork, once she began to let herself open up. She was adorable. 

And- maybe it wasn’t entirely real, but god did it make Naruto happy to have her as his wife. The smile on his face was nothing but genuine as he looked through the photos of their wedding day with their noisy, nosy friends. As Kiba took hold of the photo album, Naruto made his way to stand next to Hinata. He pressed into her side and she smiled, small and lovely, and pressed back against him. Even with nine people huddled together and talking loudly, there was a quietness that hung in the air, a peace that made his heart feel warm. That’s just how it felt when he was with Hinata. He felt in place.

The wooden floor was cold under his bare feet as he walked through the house, towards the kitchen, where he could smell something  _ wonderful _ . He opened the door and said, quietly, “Good morning Hinata.” At the stove, his friend was humming to herself as she fixed breakfast- pancakes with various berries and the jam he had gotten from Old Lady Kinoko. Hinata’s long hair was up in a ponytail, hastily made and messy and endlessly endearing, and it seemed she had taken one of his sweatshirts from the laundry. It was baggy on her and hid the beginnings of a pregnancy belly Naruto knew was growing. 

A rush of warmth ran through him as Hinata turned to smile at him, soft and fond and her face pink along her cheekbones. “Happy birthday Naruto.” A part of him, stupidly affectionate and enjoying her boundless friendship, wanted to press a kiss on her forehead, but he simply grinned at her as he moved to grab a plate of pancakes.

“Thank you Hinata.” He chuckled as moved to set his plate on the chabudai. A jar of milk that Naruto had bought a few days before was already set on the table, so Naruto poured himself and Hinata a cup full as he waited for her to settle down across from him. “You really didn’t have to do this Hinata.” Still, his heart seemed to dance in joy. Despite the past few years, it still made him delighted when a person he cared about made his birthday into something special. No longer was it a day that he scrounged up as much money as he could to buy the crappy pastry snacks from a corner store with owners watched him with hawk eyes if he lingered for too long. 

Hinata shook her head as she sat down, the hair in her ponytail whipping behind her back. “I wanted to. You’re- I- I always lost my nerve when it came to giving you birthday presents, so please enjoy this one.” She bowed her head slightly. 

He couldn’t help but wonder what that meant- how many years had she meant to give him a present? A part of him thought: when he was thirteen and he began to truly notice her, to want to stand by her side and keep encouraging her to grow. Naruto knew, now, that Hinata was a sweet woman, and it wouldn’t surprise him if she had wanted to extend a hand in friendship around their first chunin exam, but had been too shy to step forward. So Naruto smiled at her, pressed his hands together, and said, “Thank you for the meal!” He dug in with a grin. “Mmm, delicious!” His words made his friend grin cheerfully back as she nibbled on a strawberry.

They ate in companionable silence for a few minutes, Naruto peeking up from his food to watch Hinata. Locks of hair fell out of her ponytail, short wisps around her ears that curled slightly at the ends. The sweatshirt she wore had fallen off one shoulder and he could see her bare skin, pale with a long scar running along towards her chest. Kunai wound. She ate large bites of her pancakes and picked at the bowls of blueberries and strawberries and bananas.

“Can I ask you a question?” Naruto asked as he stuffed the last piece of pancake into his mouth. As he chewed, Hinata carefully nodded her head, her eyebrows close together in confusion as she waited for him to ask a question. “Who was your first kiss?” 

A breath. Hinata coughed into her fist, her cheeks warm. “My- my first…? Why, um, why are you asking?” 

Why was he asking? Naruto shrugged his shoulders, because, really, he had no idea. The thought had seeded itself in his mind, the want to know everything he could about Hyuuga (but she wasn’t a Hyuuga anymore was she? Her last name was officially Uzumaki, it was the name that was now on official forms and on the front gate of the home they lived in together) Hinata. He knew her nervous tics, how she bit her lip in concentration, how she liked to separate her food on her plate, how she adored tea and collected mugs and was trying to learn how to paint, how ramen was her self-proclaimed weakness, her favorite color was purple, how she loved to sit outside and watch the stars twinkle and blink and point out how the stars lined up while the moon shone on her like a beacon. He knew that. But, by some logic he didn’t fully understand, he wanted to know the little things that only she could tell him. “You’re my wife, ya know? I want to know more about you, even if we  _ are  _ friends. Or, maybe because we are friends? I want to know more.” 

Steady, his heart beat as he watched her- her face pink as she set aside her fork and stared at her hands. She took a deep breath and gave a small, breathy laugh. “My first kiss was with Kiba. He was both mine and Shino’s first kiss. We were fourteen and it was late after training and we were talking about love and feelings and Kiba said he would be our first kiss and we’d be his. Honestly, it was sweet.”

Naruto laughed. “Kiba’s a great guy. Man- I wish I had a nice first kiss. All I got was Sasuke!” All it had been was a push forward and an awkward press against lips that Sakura had insisted did not even  _ count  _ as a kiss, but it was all he had that could qualify as one. Even years later, he hadn't gotten a real, true, kiss. He had been on dates-he-had-not-realized-were-dates where the girl he was with would lean into his space and share his breath and dig their nails into his arm as they tried to tug them forward towards their waiting, pursed lips, but he had never let it  _ happen.  _ It never seemed right. If he was honest, if he wanted to kiss anyone it would be-

Hinata’s lips twitched and she held up a hand over her mouth. “I remember that! I- I had been so jealous.” And- a thought that had never once been in his head began to take form as he processed his words. An ugly seed of jealousy he remembered growing and cultivating as a child who wanted attention. Had Hinata been one of those girls who had a crush on Sasuke? It never seemed like she had been, but, then again, she had been pretty shy back then, it would make sense he may not have noticed at the time. Hell- he didn’t even notice that Lee and Neji had been in love, of course he wouldn’t have noticed Hinata having a crush on Sasuke. Why did it hurt to think that, at some point, Sasuke had even Hinata thinking so much about him? “What about afterwards? Who was your actual first kiss?” 

“Oh, I haven’t kissed anyone.” Naruto shook his head. 

Hinata’s head perked up and she blinked at him, her eyes wide and shining. “You’ve never- not even when you were out traveling? Not even while on a date? I know you’ve been on a few…” She shifted slightly, her hand moving towards her mouth as she stuck her thumb between her lips before quickly moving it back into her lap. 

“No, I was always focused on growing and learning. And, to be honest, I never understood I was supposed to be on a date until they  _ tried _ to kiss me or- you know. It’s just never happened for me.” His mouth felt dry. Naruto turned his head away and grabbed a handful of blueberries, stuffing a few in his mouth before asking, “If you weren’t a ninja, what would you do?” It was a nonsense, silly question that shinobi asked each other at parties, and were usually met with wild answers that were answered with laughs and cheers and booze, but Hinata hummed and took a few minutes to think of a reply. 

“I think I would want to be an artist. I would travel across the lands and paint and draw and make money that way. My father would send shinobi to fetch me and insist I become clan head every few months.” Hinata said with a smile on her face. “But, I’d run off again to find the perfect landscape.”

Naruto laughed and leaned forward, his elbow on the chabudai, suddenly wanting to be a part of this other life. “I’d leave with you every time. I’m some orphan boy that works at a ramen stand, and I would work at farms and restaurants in whatever land we end up in.” He could see this life- where Naruto would cut Hinata’s hair while sitting on a barrel of hay behind a stable, watching as she sketched into a book and whispered about the food they were going to eat when she sold another painting. It was a fantasy; it was beautiful. Even if it wasn’t real, it was him and Hinata, and it sounded fun.

“My journal would be full of you and goats you would smuggle away from farms,” Hinata laughed out. It was loud and genuine and Naruto found that he couldn’t stop smiling as they spoke of this other life, piling on nonsense after nonsense about what their life as civilians would be like. After a few minutes, Hinata sighed and placed a hand on her stomach. Somehow her face looked both resigned and serene. “The festival must have already begun. Do you want to go now?”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Naruto's really like 'I love that Hinata is my wife and that we're married and I love spending time with her :)' this fool!!!! 
> 
> Leave a comment and tell me what you think <33


	3. seasons change gone away and back again

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> title from "Spring Rain" by Oscar Dunbar

Water splashed onto Naruto’s bare feet as he waded through the pond. It was large enough that it seemed better suited for a large park than a family property, but, as Kakashi had explained when Naruto had asked him about it, the Hatake’s had once been a large clan within Konoha. How heartbreaking, that prominent clans like the Hatake and Uchiha and Uzumaki slowly dwindled down to only a few people left alive to either pass down the name or let it die with them. At least he had this pond. 

In the weeks since they moved into the Hatake residence, he and Hinata had been slowly working on cleaning up the pond. Hinata was sitting to the side of the pond, carefully perched on top of a large rock with her bare feet in the water. She had gathered up the long length of the silver skirt of her dress and gathered the soft purple haori she wore close to her chest as she watched Naruto shift through the water. Her stomach was prominent enough that anyone could be able to guess that she was pregnant. 

Hinata held up a hand and waved him over, so Naruto waded over towards her. “Give me your hand.” She said with a small smile, her own hand stretched out. He placed his onto her hand, letting her slowly guide his hand towards her stomach, smoothing along the curve until she found the right spot where- 

A kick, an edge against her stomach that caused Naruto to startle slightly and grin up at Hinata. “Whoa.” The baby moved again, a small little shove that they could both feel, and they laughed together. “Does it hurt?” He glanced up at her, at her opalescent eyes that were glued onto where her hand gripped his wrist in a loose circle. 

She gave a small shake of her head. “It’s odd, but it doesn’t hurt.” For a moment, they stood there, his hand on her stomach despite the fact that the baby had stopped moving about after a minute. “It finally feels real now. I mean, it’s been real, but it feels as though- it is now concrete. I’m having a baby.” Her hand began to move, soft, absentminded movement up his forearm and back down to his wrist. In a few days she had a doctors appointment to learn the baby’s sex, and as the day came closer and closer, she seemed to withdraw more and more into herself. 

Naruto shifted his hand so that hers fell into his, holding her small, slim hand in his. “Have you thought of any possible names?” He asked as he thought about what she was saying, because, truthfully, it  _ was _ only beginning to feel real. It was something that has been between them for the eight weeks they have been married and living together, but easy enough to forget about, even if it was the reason they had stepped into this situation together. No- being married to Hinata wasn’t a situation, and her child wasn’t either. Honestly, Naruto enjoyed it, the easy company and conversation and holding her close as they sat on the couch watching a film from the Land of Iron about samurai falling in love against all odds. They were married, and they had married for a reason, but until now it was easy to put that reason aside for later. There was still so much to prepare for. 

She blinked at her before she slowly nodded her head and gave a hum. “I’ve been thinking… Hideaki if it’s a boy, and Hikari for a girl. What do you think?”

That he had no right to be the one having this conversation with her. That his opinion doesn't matter. That he loved how those names sounded, Uzumaki Hideaki, Uzumaki Hikari. “They’re great,” He said with a grin as he let go of her hand and instead leaned against the rock she sat on, staring up at her as she smiled down at him. After a moment, Naruto had to glance away, instead towards the large pond, at the small ripples along the water and the way it shone with the bright sun hitting it. “Is it a family tradition? Naming a first born with ‘Hi?’” 

Hinata hummed, a soft sound that he knew meant yes and was accompanied by a nod of her head, even if he wasn’t looking at her. “The first born in the main branch. The child who will grow to be Hyuuga clan leader. Despite my sister being younger and having been chosen as the next clan leader, she has declared that she will not have any child, so, technically, the next Hyuuga head will be my first born child. Possibly. I suppose we will see in the future. Perhaps with the work I have been doing, the clan head will be chosen by the clan as a whole.” He could hear the unspoken:  _ in an ideal world, Neji would have stepped in after my father _ . “This camera’s film is nearly done,” Hinata changed the subject as she held up the disposable camera she had in her hand. “I took some of you out in the water.”

Naruto laughed and hoisted himself up the rock so he could take the camera from her, falling back onto the water on his feet, the water rippling around him as he stood atop of it before slowly letting his feet drift back to the bottom of the pond. His knees buckled slightly as he stood in the water, but he only grinned and began to take pictures of Hinata. She laughed and attempted to pose for a few as she giggled. The sun was hitting her just right, and Naruto was sure it would catch the blinding shine of her soul in the photos. 

The photo was black and grainy, and to be honest Naruto couldn’t really see what was supposed to be a baby, but he couldn’t stop smiling as he set the ultrasound picture of Hinata’s daughter- Uzumaki Hikari, his mind reminded him- into its own slip inside of the photo album, right under a picture of Hinata in a deep purple and pink yukata at the festival a few weeks ago on Naruto’s birthday. She was holding a stuffed animal version of Kurama that had caused the fox inside of him to preen while also complaining about how it was much too cute to reach his likeness. 

Humming under his breath, Naruto found a pen and carefully wrote out along the side of the picture where a spot was clear for any writing-  _ Uzumaki Hikari, ultrasound (November 14, fifteen weeks) _ . He couldn’t help but smile, seeing how the name- Uzumaki Hikari- fit together, as nice as Uzumaki Hinata, a string of letters, a name, that connected them and made them family. Even if Uzumaki Hikari did not have his blood, he would care for her as though she did, he would love her with every cell in his body, because even in this black and white alien looking picture, Naruto couldn’t help but feel a surge of emotion build up in his chest and want to protect and hold and love this little child. 

He set aside his pen and began to shift through the pages of the photo album, at the pictures of him and Hinata in the past two months of marriage. Perhaps it wasn’t the sort of life his family had foreseen for him, but he couldn’t help but feel a boundless joy in his heart, steady and strong, as he looked through the pictures from their wedding to pictures of Hinata in the kitchen with her hair in a ponytail and her hands in the sink to him napping on the sofa while hugging a pile of laundry after coming home from a few days off on a mission. He breathed in and laughed softly as he riffled through the pages.

This was how Hinata found him as she returned home from visiting her father. He glanced up at her as she stepped into the room after calling out, and froze when he saw her face- her lips trembling and her eyes staring down at her feet. Immediately, Naruto stood up and rushed over to her side, gently cupping her cheeks and pulling her towards him. “What’s wrong? What happened?”

It took a few minutes as Hinata gained her composure, giving quiet gasps, before she said, “I ran into Takumi-kun.” 

A bad taste formed in Naruto’s mouth as he thought about Ishida Takumi. Him and Hinata had both seen him a few times around the village in the last few weeks, but it was brief and Ishida had never moved to look towards them. Naruto held Hinata closer as he fought every part of his being to stay calm, stay calm, stay calm, when all he wanted to do was find Ishida Takumi and grab him by his weasel neck and demand to know why, _ how _ , he was hurting Hinata so much. It’s been years since Naruto had wanted to hurt anyone as much as he wanted to hurt Ishida Takumi, and he tried his best to keep his killing intent down, to stop and focus on the woman in his arms as she breathed in and out and struggled to say what had happened. 

Finally, she said in a small voice, “He didn’t say anything that I didn’t expect, but it still- hurt. I don’t expect much anymore, not after everything, now that I’m married to you, but, I don’t know. Maybe an acknowledgement? But, he’s so adamant now that I cheated on him with you, that I’m the one in the wrong when he was the one who turned his back on me and left without a word. I just- I did what I had to. If I waited too long, I would have begun to show and everyone would  _ know _ . And, there was no waiting for Takumi-kun. He  _ left _ . He left me to either be shunned or to kill the baby by the hands of some ex-medical ninja outside of Konoha and I chose to ignore the options and have something better. He’s in the wrong.  _ He  _ is.” 

All he could do was rub soothing circles into her back and quietly agree with her. 

“I should have never stayed with him. Never dated him. He asked me out, and he seemed so nice, and he was until now. There were times he would get jealous, but it seemed normal and Ino said that’s how men could be. I never thought…” Hinata sighed and pressed her face into the crook of Naruto’s neck, her breathing warm on the bare skin there. Until everything, Naruto had liked Ishida Takumi well enough, and would have never foreseen this series of events. Still, Naruto was unsure what to say to Hinata. Instead of waiting for him, she simply barreled on. “I’m glad this happened, though. I’m happy to spend my days with you. To raise my daughter with you. I know you’ll love her. At the ultrasound, you held my hand and looked so happy, and I couldn’t imagine Takumi-kun ever…” 

Suddenly, Naruto wondered if she had loved Ishida like he thought she did. She never seemed to miss him in their quiet moments, and everytime she spoke about him, she was nothing but angry and frustrated that he had failed to take responsibility- and, as Ino had heard, had been telling friends of his that Hinata was nothing but an easy girl who latched on to the villages ‘top overrated ninja.’ When he had heard from Ino, he had been more furious about the part where he called Hinata easy than the part about him like she had thought he would be offended by. Naruto had stopped caring what every person thought of him long ago. He had people who cared about him, who he truly was, and one stupid, unreliable ninja’s words about who Naruto was meant nothing to him. He knew his worth. He knew that there were people who would stand behind him and hold him up when he needed it.

Naruto pressed his lips against the top of her head and he could hear a small intake of her breath. “Forget him. He’s no one. I’m your child’s father. Our daughter will grow and grow, and be  _ ours _ . That guy, he’s no one.” Hinata hummed back, pulling away slightly. She leaned up and pressed a kiss to Naruto’s cheek. Her lips were slightly sticky from gloss, and she laughed when she had trouble pulling away. She reached up to wipe the gloss from his cheek. He could feel as it only spread. Hinata raised a hand and carefully licked at her sleeve before pressing it to his cheek. Naruto laughed, but let her wipe away the lip gloss. “How was your father?”

Hinata hummed as she pulled her hand away. “Good. My father was happy to have an ultrasound picture. He likes the name, too. Uzumaki Hikari. He spent most of the time talking to my stomach! I visited Iruka-sensei as well. He cried a little bit and found a spare picture frame for the photo!”

Naruto gave an adoring sigh and shook his head, as though he  _ wasn’t _ smiling widely at the thought. “I put ours in the photo album.” He tilted his head towards where it sat, open and forgotten on the floor in favor of Naruto holding Hinata. “Want to look through it with me?”

And she smiled, bright and lovely, and agreed. 

Sometimes, Naruto had to stop all he was doing so he could watch as Hinata laughed. It had always been that way. The first time he had heard Hinata laugh, he had dropped his chin in his hands and watched as her eyes closed and her mouth opened wide and the smile lines formed along her face. They were seventeen and it was months after the war, when they had gone out to eat ramen together when all their other friends had bailed on them. And even now, three years later, he was just as enthralled by her laughter as she tasted the cheese Old Lady Kinoko was offering her.

While she was past pregnancy cravings, which had consisted of a lot of the jam from Old Lady Kinoko’s shop and a loathing for anything that could have her chewing into an onion, she had completely fallen in love with the Kinoko’s jams and enjoyed visiting the old woman. Hinata would lovingly pet the old lady’s goat as they spoke for close to an hour, before leaving with a basket full of cheese, bread, and jams.

Naruto was the one sitting on the floor, petting the goat’s head and feeling her horns, thick and rough, as Hinata spoke to Old Lady Kinoko and let the old woman place her hand on her stomach. “Oh, how sweet, how sweet. I always wanted to have children of my own, but the only kids I’ve ever had were goats!” The old woman gave a long laugh and Hinata gave her a small chuckle. “I have- I have an old chest, Naruto-kun, do you mind grabbing it? It’s upstairs in my bedroom, big chest, about this big.” She held out her hands in approximate size and Naruto stood with a stretch and jogged up the stairs to fetch the chest for the old woman. 

Her apartment was sparse, only an old photograph and an old teapot with a crack running down its side and painted with several faces of a young woman and brightly colored mushrooms sitting in the living area told of personal touches. Maybe Naruto should begin to bring the old woman flowers when he could. He quickly found her bedroom and the chest, large and heavy. He quickly carried in down the stairs and placed it next to the goat when he arrived back into the shop. Hinata stood next to Naruto, watching curiously as the woman opened the old chest as she muttered to herself over the old clasps and her old fingers. Finally, Kinoko opened the chest and they could see the inside. 

Inside were little clothes- old and traditional, but in obvious good care- and what looked to be a hand stitched stuffed animal shaped like a goat. There was another little cushion that resembled a mushroom- its top a soft pink with little hearts stitched among it. Naruto glanced up at Old Lady Kinoko, and he knew what this was, what this meant to her, how her not having a child of her own wasn’t her choice and that now she could only joke about her kids. Kinoko’s eyes shone and her hands hovered over the little kimono inside the chest before rising to her chest. “I took good care of it for so long. I would like you two to have it. There’s much love between you two, and I care for you Naruto-kun. You are a good young man who comes visit me whenever you can and treat my bread and jam as though it’s your second favorite food, and you feel like what a grandson must feel like. So, please, take good care of these, and take them for your little musume-san.” Her lips quivered and Naruto couldn’t help himself as he leaned forward to hug the old woman close to him. 

“Thank you,” Hinata whispered, “We’ll treasure these. Thank you.” 

They left soon after, Hinata holding a basket full of treats and Naruto holding the chest in his arms.

Naruto met Kakashi’s eyes, dull and begging Naruto to either commit a crime or abed Kakashi in getting rid of the old geezer who had been talking about  _ infrastructure  _ and the growth of Konoha for the last hour. From across the table, Iruka made a slight head movement that caught both Naruto and Kakashi’s eye, causing them to still at the don’t-you-two-dare look gleaming in his dark eyes. Scary. Finally, the old man seemed to have a lull in his speech, and Iruka quickly sat up straight and began speaking, much to the old man’s obvious chagrin. 

Normally, Naruto wasn’t a part of official meetings like these, but the plans he had been fine tuning with Iruka and, through long letters within months, Sasuke were well thought out enough and written out- in his cleanest handwriting, reminisce of the one he used for his seals. It was something he only ran the basics to Kakashi, knowing the man, a bit in his ways about certain things, may not see the importance of what Naruto was proposing. The idea had begun for the orphans of Konoha, but had slowly formed into ideas for the academy that Iruka had taken a liking to when he read through Naruto’s initial scribbling notes on a napkin from Ichiraku’s. Overall- this was boring. He couldn’t wait to get back home with Hinata. She had been in the pond when he had left for the meeting, talking to a few of Naruto’s summons who had taken a shining to the large pond they had cleaned up.

Iruka turned towards Naruto and said, “I’ve listened to a lot of Naruto’s plan, and I believe it would be beneficial to consider and implement them in our village. Naruto.” He gave him a small, encouraging smile, and Naruto couldn’t help but grin back as he tapped his knuckles to his knee.

The program he thought of was simple enough. Start a real, working orphanage. Technically, there  _ was _ one, but children did not have to live there after a guardians death, so more often than not children were either homeless and running around or had been taken in by people who treated them as their own children or small workers. There was no current orphanage, since the village’s destruction, but the one in place from the Third Hokage’s time was abysmal anyhow. Only a few children had lived there, since that was all the few people who ran it could afford, which was a shame since there were many orphans in a large shinobi village such as Konoha. “I know for a fact that two other people sitting at this table were orphaned at a young age. While we may have become successful, where were we as kids? 

‘Kakashi was one of the youngest working black ops in ANBU, and while many seem to see that as an accomplishment, I see it as a way to keep a depressed thirteen year old who lost so many close to him working so he can’t stop and process the amount of trauma he has to have- sorry Sensei, but you know I have to be somewhere close to what you felt back then. Iruka and I were both troublemakers because we wanted some sort of parental attention. We were all children living by ourselves and fending for ourselves. It’s not healthy. The children of Konoha deserve better.” He shot Kakashi an apologetic look, but the man simply shrugged his shoulders, so Naruto continued on his explanation. 

They would find people who would take the time to support and care for the children, provide a large home for them all to live together, and set aside an adequate amount of money- money that they could set aside and not use for something like, say, a black ops team. It should be easy enough. Yet-

“We can’t just disassemble ANBU Naruto.” Kakashi drawled out, much to Naruto’s annoyment when several other people nodded their heads in agreement. 

“Not ANBU as a whole. They can stay to protect the village and the Hokage and such, but what good is there for black ops? Secret missions? We’re living in a time of peace. What good is that peace if we keep a team that is meant for secret missions that could ruin it all in one moment?” Naruto argued back, trying his best to keep his annoyance from bleeding into his voice, but he could tell his tone had been biting enough that several of the old men looked put out by his response. Still, Naruto continued on with his explanation. Get rid of most of ANBU to provide better options- housing, caretakers, food, toys- for the orphanage. Encourage the people of the village to adopt children for themselves. Naruto knew from conversations he had with Sakura and Iruka that there were many older ninja who wanted children, but they, for many reasons, could not have a child on their own. Why not push for adoption? Plus, there were still many homeless, orphaned children from the war that needed to be taken care of. 

“I think-” Naruto’s hand moved to the back of his neck and pulled at the little hairs there as he bit his lip and contemplated saying what he wanted to say next. It was something he knew that the elders of the village would not like to hear, it was something that he knew Kakashi needed to hear because he knew his sensei felt the way he felt, deep down inside his heart, but was too scarred and set to the old ways to even attempt this himself. So Naruto breathed in, his heart beating steady in his chest as he said, “the children of Konoha should have more rights. I have been talking to Iruka-sensei about changing the academy system to better help the children of the village grow. More academics. Less-” he waved his hand in the air and said, “ninja studies.”

“ _ More  _ academics? Naruto, what?” Kakashi’s eyebrows were pulled close together and he was leaning forward. It was the most emotion he had shown during the whole meeting, and it seemed to affect the whole room, a restless, curious energy filled up around them. “The way the academy is has been like this since nearly the beginning of the village.” 

“And times are changing! We can’t just do everything how Senju Hashirama set up and the Third Hokage kept for the years he stood as the Hidden Leaf’s leader! The Third was a great man, but he overlooked so much, and we cannot let this happen anymore to the people of Konoha! To the children!” Naruto snapped, practically snarling out as he met his former sensei’s steely eyes. Moments passed before others began to speak, thinking out loud about what they thought of Naruto’s proposal, accepting the stack of piles he had prepared before dismissing him. It left him feeling like the kid he once was. Damn- he really wanted to go see Hinata now. She was always good at making him feel better. Hinata would find ways to talk solely in rhymes and, since they have begun living together, she would get him to sing along with her in making up songs to sing as they folded laundry or cleaned the kitchen. 

He left the Hokage tower with his hands deep in his pockets, his fingers shifting about the leftover peppermint candy he kept for when Hinata was going through her morning sickness. Naruto took one out and opened up the wrapper to plop the candy into his mouth. He always liked peppermint. Though, he never had much growing up. Sometimes, Ero-Sannin would buy him some as a treat when moving through a village with a candy shop- he would let Naruto roam around the store, filling up bags of candy, and more often than not he ended up with about three bags of peppermint to stuff in his bag and share as they traveled. 

Naruto walked up along fences and buildings as he made his way through the village back towards his and Hinata’s home. He passed by a group of children playing ninja together, laughing as they chased each other and threw paper shaped to look like shuriken. One of the children caught sight of Naruto and waved at him, so Naruto grinned and waved back before moving along. He loved kids, he really, really did, but he didn’t feel like interacting with people while he still felt a lingering burst of anger deep in his gut. Would change really have to wait until he became Hokage? Or, what if he became Hokage and turned as complicit as the Third had been after so long. He huffed out a sigh. He had cared for the old man, he still did, but he had power in the village, yet let so much wrong happen under his nose.

When he arrived at the Uzumaki home, he found Hinata in the living room, sorting through new printed photos with a fuzzy yellow blanket wrapped around her shoulders. She gave him a small smile as he walked into the room, and held out her arm to invite him close. Naruto laughed and sat close to her, their thighs touching, as they did their best to wrap the blanket around them both. She picked up a photo- the one Naruto had taken of her sitting on top of a rock by the small pond on their residence, the sun surrounding her as her mouth was open in laughter- and handed it to him. Naruto placed it into the photo album. They quietly went through the actions, Hinata handing him photos and Naruto placing them into the photo album, only a few words and giggling exchanged between them as they looked at a particular photo. 

“How was it?” Hinata asked quietly as she handed him a photo of Naruto sitting on top of the bathroom sink, his mouth open in midconversation and his toothbrush in his hand, his chest bare. 

Naruto sighed and adjusted the blanket around his shoulders. “I think they need more time and explanation. Change is hard, especially for these old men stuck in their ways. Even for Kakashi! Man! I didn’t even get to talk about changing the Academy’s system and graduation ages. I did leave my papers with them, so hopefully someone will read through it.” Hinata handed him the last picture from the pile, a blurry photograph of Hinata brushing her long hair, her tongue sticking out between her lips when she had noticed Naruto standing near her with the camera in hand. 

Hinata let her head fall on his shoulder, her breath warm on his neck as she breathed in slowly, her words a soft breeze against him, “You’ve always been good with words. With helping people believe in you. I’m sure you can do this.” Naruto’s breath seemed to catch in his throat and all he could do was nod. After a moment, Hinata asked, “Want to make a blanket fort?”

“I’ve never made one of those.” Naruto answered truthfully. Hinata shifted until her face was right in front of his, only inches away, and why was it so hard to focus and breath and his heart seemed to beat a little too hard inside his chest and she whispered, “I can’t let that be true for another night,” and she grabbed his hands and helped him stand up. “Grab as many blankets and pillows as you can.” Her eyes shone bright as she looked up at him and Naruto couldn’t help but grin at her and race towards his room to grab every blanket and sheet he had in there and bring them in the living room before grabbing the extras they kept in a coat closet. Hinata passed him in the hallway, carrying her own pillows and blankets, grinning at him happily as they walked to the living room together. 

Never had Naruto done anything like this. He couldn’t stop himself from smiling, the disappointment and the anger from earlier in the day dissipating as he and Hinata worked on holding up several blankets and placed them in front of the couch, smiling at each other as they worked. It was peaceful and- fun. He never had fun like this growing up. When they deemed the blanket fort as done, they climbed in underneath, shrouded in the dark of the blankets. Naruto rolled onto his side to face Hinata. She still had the yellow blanket from earlier, gingerly placing it on top of them both. 

“Hi,” Naruto whispered to her. 

“Hi,” She softly replied. 

“Did you do this alot as a kid?” Naruto asked. 

Hinata laughed and nodded her head. “Yes. I’d make them with Hanabi sometimes, but not really much until we were a little older. After our first Chunin exams, Neji had started to build some with us too. One time, the three of us all fell asleep in a blanket fort and our father found us in the morning and gave us all breakfast while we still sat in our fort. Hey, Naruto.” She scooched closer to Naruto, her feet tanging with his. 

“Yeah?” 

“Let’s make lots and lots of blanket forts with Hikari.” 

Naruto grinned and let his forehead fall against Hinata’s, his arm raising up to wrap around her waist, holding her close. “I like that. When she gets old enough, she’ll help us make it and she’ll lie right here between us.” Hinata snuggled close to Naruto, moving her head to rest near his neck, her own arm wrapping around him. Naruto moved his hand to rest on her stomach, rubbing slowly back and forth. “Hinata?”

“Hmm?” She hummed against his neck. Her fingers played with the edge of his shirt’s neck and for a second, it was all he could pay attention to before he breathed in and remembered there was something he wanted to say to her.

A part of him wanted to say- thank you. Thank you for being such a wonderful friend. That he knew that this couldn’t had been how she saw her life to pan out, but he was glad to be here with her, that he was happy to be her husband and to see her every day and to have her say ‘let’s do this with Hikari,’ as though this was how it should always be. Instead, he smiled into the top of her head and said, “Thank you.” 

They fell asleep in each other's arms. When he woke up, it was to see Hinata’s dark head pressed against his chest and her arm around him and to the scent of the lavender and orange shampoo she used. Naruto let himself fiddle with a lock of her long hair as he watched Hinata slowly begin to wake up. She glanced up at him and  _ smiled _ , and she was all he could see, bright in the dim light of their blanket fort.

“Hi,” she whispered through her smile.

“Hi,” he grinned back at her. His fingers twitched in her hair. 

The bag of oranges bumped against his thigh as he walked next to an old woman. He didn’t know who she was, but had offered to carry her heavy load of groceries when he passed her on the street. The old woman had been delighted, her wrinkled face brightening up. She held onto the crook of his elbow and glanced up at him and spoke in slow, deliberate sentences. Already, the old lady had asked about his wife, talking about how happy she had been to hear he had married, that a hero deserved to marry and be happy. Naruto had chuckled and thanked her, not quite sure how to respond to that kind of praise. It was the kind he got from many old women, and the occasional older men, who talked about him as though they saw themselves as his grandparents who helped raised him. 

It was kind of funny, in a way that got him annoyed when he thought too hard about it all. So, he tended not to think too much about the hypocrisy of it all. Instead, he held onto the old lady’s groceries and was the type of man who he had learned to be- good. After he placed the bags of food onto her kitchen table and helped her place it all away, he left with a necklace with a metal charm shaped to look like a rabbit around his neck (the old woman had insisted for nearly half an hour before Naruto caved) and a bag with a few oranges.

Naruto walked back towards the marketplace, where he browsed around for a while. He had gotten back from a solo mission earlier than expected, and had wanted to buy some things for the baby as a nice surprise for Hinata. It wasn’t until he had bought a soft hand woven purple and pink blanket, a little pillow shaped like the sun, and a few clothes that he found unbelievably cute, that he realized that in the few days he was gone Hinata might have bought any of these herself. With a sigh, he placed what he bought into the bag and made his way home.

He was halfway there when he saw a familiar face- Motomiya Morisuke. He was about a year younger than Naruto, with long black hair braided down his back and his leaf headband tied around his neck to hide large, jagged scars that lined his throat, an old wound from a bad fight a few years prior that took away his voice. Motomiya worked mainly at the mission desk and had long ago perfected the ‘you-think-you-actually-did-this-right’ stare for shinobi to properly do their paperwork. He was a kind person, with a bright smile, expressive features, and- according to his friends- had a crush on Naruto as large as the sun. Naruto liked Motomiya- as a friend. He was nice to talk to. But, he hadn't seen the man outside of the mission desk in months, and he was good friends with Ishida Takumi, so a part of him worried about how the man would treat him.

Naruto switched his bag to his left hand and held out his right to pat Motomiya on the shoulder. “Hey! How’ve you been Miya-san? It’s been a while!”

Motomiya grinned and shrugged his shoulders, his hands coming up to sign, quick and relaxed. ‘Good! How about you?’ Motomiya pointed towards Naruto and raised his eyebrows in question, a smile still on his face. 

“I’ve been good! A lot’s changed in the past few months, but it’s all a good change, ya know?” He laughed as his hand moved to scratch behind his neck, unsure what to say to Motomiya. He felt awkward and unsettled, but Motomiya had responded to him kindly, as a friend, so Naruto smiled widely and did his best to push back at the uncomfortable feelings rising inside of his gut. 

‘Naruto’ Motomiya’s eyebrows pulled together and he bit on his lip, his hand momentarily stuck in the round-shaped ‘O’ of Naruto’s name before he raised both hands, seemingly coming to terms with his next words. ‘I know you, I know Hinata. You are a good man, and she is a good woman. Everything Takumi is saying is shit. I know it’s shit. Takumi has been my best friend for years, and has helped me through my accident.’ He took a slow, deep breath and raised a hand to rest on the emblem of the Hidden Leaf, where deep scars lay underneath. Motomiya gave Naruto a sad smile as he moved his hands again. ‘He has been my friend, but what he has said about you and Hinata is unacceptable, so I apologize. Takumi has always been a little jealous of you. I think it hurt him that Hinata married you. That doesn’t excuse anything he has said. I am trying to be the voice of reason, but it’s a bit hard to be heard with my own voice.’

His smile was still sad, but Naruto couldn’t help but laugh at Motomiya’s words. “Miya-san, I think plenty of people at the mission desk can hear your voice loud and clear. Honestly, I don’t think anyone's been so afraid of messing up since Iruka worked there!”

Motomiya raised a shoulder up in a shrug, a smug smile lifting up his lips, ‘What can I say, I might have asked Iruka-sensei for a few pointers.’ Naruto laughed again and Motomiya joined in, his laugh a few heaving puffs of breaths. 

“I’m glad we can still be friends. And- thanks Miya-san. I’ll see you around, yeah?” He pressed his fist against the man’s shoulder and left with a smile and a wave goodbye. It was nice to know that there was someone out there, with no idea of the full story, who was speaking up for Naruto and Hinata. As he walked home, he thought about what Motomiya had said, that Ishida Takumi had been jealous of him. Naruto supposed it wasn’t the first time he heard that someone was jealous of him- Sasuke once said he was jealous of how easily he made talking to others seem, he had gotten countless complaints with the word ‘jealous’ thrown about from his friends that he so easily got confessions, kids would say that they were jealous that he was so strong. But why was Ishida jealous of him? 

When Naruto arrived home, he carefully lined up his shoes next to Hinata’s and called out, “I’m home!” Hinata’s voice answered, and he followed it towards where she sat at the chabudai, a frown on her face as she read a book. Naruto recognized it as one that sat on the bedside table of her room, worn and battered and with her small, fine handwriting in the margins. She glanced up as he entered the room and the frown on her face morphed into a smile, small, but nonetheless bright. 

“You’re back early.” She said as she placed her book onto the chabudai. 

Naruto shrugged his shoulders as he sat on the soft cushion across the table from her. “All went well, ya know. I went to the market and bought some things. Also, I helped an old lady with her groceries so she gave me some oranges! Want one?” Hinata grinned and nodded her head, so Naruto dug into the bag and pulled out an orange for her. Their fingers brushed as he handed it to her. Naruto reached in again and pulled out the little sun-shaped pillow. “For Hikari! Cute, right?”

Hinata paused in her motion of digging her nails into the skin of the orange. Her smile widened, “Cute. I haven’t picked up a thing for Hikari yet.” Her eyes dropped back to her hands and slowly, they peeled at the orange. “Hmmm, maybe we should list out everything we will need. Clothes, diapers, toys…” She trailed off as Naruto pulled out the blanket and clothing he had bought as well. “Small,” she whispered as she watched Naruto unfold a few of the tiny onesies into his lap. 

They  _ were _ small, and he couldn’t help but think about how tiny and wonderful Hikari was going to be when she finally entered the world. Naruto grinned as he finished taking out the clothes. “Man, I’m so excited! You know, I’m glad I get to have this with you.” He smoothed at small wrinkles that had formed on the small pieces of clothes he had bought, not able to meet Hinata’s eyes as he spoke. “I’ve always loved spending time with you, so this all feels… right. Ya know?” He tilted his head back and closed his eyes. Hinata made a small noise, a little choked, a little full, that caused his steady heart to beat a little faster.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Leave a comment and tell me your thoughts <333
> 
> Edit: comments are now monitored 💝💝


	4. with pearls I painted myself a home

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> chapter title from "Rubies and Rocks" by Thao & Mirah

Small pieces of paper stuck to Naruto’s hands as he worried at the label of the beer bottle he had been nursing for the last half hour. Next to him, Lee was talking animatedly about his last mission to Suna, his eyes practically sparkling as he spoke about Gaara, his hands thankfully free of any alcohol- they had all learned the hard way why Lee was not allowed a sip of alcohol. It was odd to have so many people at the house, and it was also odd that Hinata wasn’t there with them all. She had left with the girls to have a night in at the apartment Sakura and Ino shared, though Naruto wasn’t sure if she would have the same kind of fun the girls surely wanted to have seeing as she was over twenty weeks pregnant. 

As Lee’s story began to taper off, Shikamaru spoke up, “Oi, Naruto! You’ve been quiet all day. What’s going on?” His cheeks were flushed pink and there was a soft smile on his face no matter how he tried to play off like he was scowling at Naruto. 

Naruto raised his beer to his lips and took a sip, shrugging his shoulders. “I’ve been thinking. You know Motomiya Morisuke, right?” The question was met with affirmatives and laughter and a few voices saying something along the lines of ‘the-guy-who-is-so-in-love-with-you-it's-shocking-you-don't-see-it.’ Naruto rolled his eyes, but continued. “I ran into him a few weeks back and he said something,” Choji and Kiba met eyes and giggled like children, “about how Ishida Takumi was  _ jealous  _ of me. What does that even mean? Jealous of me?”

Surprisingly, it was Sai who spoke up, his voice quiet yet booming in the sudden silence as he said, “Well, you married the girl he was with a week after they broke up. Seems that jealousy was warranted.” Which was not helpful whatsoever. Naruto stuck his tongue out at his friend and took a few gulps of his drink. Sai simply shrugged his shoulders before raising his hand to calmly flip Naruto off. The asshole. 

“You and Hinata have always been pretty close,” Shikamaru mused as he leaned forward to grab another beer bottle. “Remember how Ishida would get all red when Naruto would go and wrap his arm around Hinata while walking? It’s not like it’s something you only did with her, but I can see how it would bother him, especially when they first started dating.” 

“Oh man! Remember when he told us about how Naruto showed up in the middle of a date he and Hinata were having and just didn’t leave!” Kiba laughed loudly enough that Akamaru’s head perked up from where he sat curled up in the corner of the room, with a blanket Naruto had grabbed from a closet wrapped around his shoulders. The dog huffed and settled back down for a nap.

“Wait, Naruto, is that true?” Lee asked with a small smile on his face as he sipped at his cranberry juice.

Was it true? Naruto’s fingers rubbed at the label of his beer as he closed his eyes and tried to think back on all the times he had run into Hinata with Ishida Takumi. There had been one time they had been walking past and Naruto had walked along with them and Hinata had mentioned needing to pick something up at a store that Naruto had realized he should also pick up so he went along with them both, the time he and Sasuke had shown up at a training ground to see Ishida and Hinata there and they had stayed for a while, the time he had ran into them at Ichiraku’s at had sat with them and- Naruto fumbled and nearly dropped his drink as he realized yes, yes he had in fact dropped in on a date between Hinata and Ishida and had spent the whole time talking to them and left with them and had even laughed and waved Ishida off so Naruto could walk Hinata home since his place was closer than Ishida’s. No wonder the guy didn’t like Naruto. 

Naruto chuckle was close to a groan as he placed his hand on his forehead. “I can’t believe I did that! Still, even if I did all that, it still isn’t right what he’s been saying about Hinata.”

There was a pause before Shikamaru asked, voice cold and hard as steel, the same voice Naruto had heard while deep in battles together, “What kind of stuff has he been saying about Hinata?” To be honest, he would have thought Ino would’ve told Shikamaru what she had overheard, but Naruto supposed she had some sense of confidentiality for the things she had heard- Ino was a gossip, but she was also one of Hinata’s closest friends. Even if she was an instigator most of the time. So, Naruto sighed and said a few of the things Ino had relayed to him that Ishida Takumi had said about Hinata. By the time he was done, he glanced up to see his friends faces- shocked and angry and on the edge of drunk-enough-to-do-something-stupid. Even Shino, who was drinking from the same bottle of cranberry juice as Lee, looked ready to storm around the village to find Ishida. 

Lee’s hand shot out and grabbed for an open beer bottle. Several hands reached out to grab at the bottle and Lee’s arm, shouting all around as they yelled at each other and at Lee and Lee at the injustice of men who couldn’t handle when a woman broke up with them properly. “Hinata is a wonderful young woman! For him to spout such nonsense-” Lee broke off, nostrils flared as he stared ahead at one of the picture frames from Naruto and Hinata’s wedding.

“Look, Lee, I’m as angry as anyone!” Naruto said as he held on tightly to his friend's shoulder, trying to gouge if it was safe to let go yet, “Everytime I go anywhere near him and he acts like he didn’t- he isn’t- he  _ hurt _ Hinata. He hurt her with his words and he  _ keeps  _ doing it and I just want to-” He broke off, his throat too tight to get anything out correctly. Some days he would see Ishida Takumi and he wanted to grab him by his shirt and pull him forward and look him straight in the eyes and say-  _ you made the biggest mistake in your life _ . Naruto breathed in and met Lee’s eyes. “Iruka is already giving him hell, and so is Motomiya. We’ll live our lives. And he’ll live his life knowing who he turned his back on.”

Lee’s shoulders untensed and Naruto let go, sitting back down with his friends. They were quiet for a moment, before Shikamaru cleared his throat and said, “So, you and Gaara, huh?” With a pointed look towards Lee and a smirk on his lips and Lee spluttered in response, causing the tense atmosphere of the minute before to break as they began to tease each other.

They lay against each other, with books in their hands and music playing softly from the radio that they had moved from the kitchen into the living room, sitting on the floor next to a pile of folded blankets and clothes that Naruto had brought inside from the clothes line. Hinata was reading one of Jiraiya’s books- an old worn copy that the man himself had given to Naruto when he was about fourteen, about a young man who traveled lands and fell in love in nearly every village he stopped in before finally settling down with the daughter of the antagonist he had been fighting with for years. It was a good book, much better than a lot of Jiraiya’s Makeout Series books that Kakashi was fond of. Naruto was reading a book of poems, all about the sun and the stars and the moon and nature and love. Hinata and Naruto had exchanged their favorite books- it was nice to read what the other loved and to talk about together.

On the page Naruto was reading, a poem that had words underlined and had little moon drawings along the page and what Naruto recognized as the bottom half of his face- his lips pulled back in a smile that showed his teeth, the whiskers along his cheeks, his chin. He couldn’t help but smile as he traced the drawings Hinata had made with his thumb and read the words:

_ And oh—how the moon creates a love within  _

_ I see the craters along her lovely face  _

_ My tears fall from my eyes  _

_ onto the pages of heartfelt words I wish  _

_ could fully explain  _

_ Because how can something so alluring  _

_ like the moon above be real _

_ You are my moon _

_ With craters and impossibilities welled between your edges  _

_ Each and every time I meet your eyes _

_ I am too stunned to look away _

_ A beat drums from deep within! _

_ And who am I to resist the moon and her quiet, calling voice? _

_ I feel the undeniable pull of her strength  _

_ And everynight I long to be held by her embrace, _

_ sweet and unyielding,  _

_ graceful and powerful _

_ How can someone so alluring be real? _

_ How could I ever convince my bones and my heart  _

_ that I do not belong to her _

_ For the moon is free of bindings  _

_ Moving willingly from mountain tops to seas to the scant desert lands _

Naruto glanced at Hinata, who was leaning against him with a blanket over her shoulders and a small smile on her face as she read. He placed the book in his hands onto the couch and moved to hold Hinata in his arms, his hands resting on her stomach and his chin on top of her head, pulling his wife close to him. “How is it?” 

Hinata hummed in thought. “It’s certainly not something I would expect of Jiraiya-sama, though that may be because most of the books I knew of were the ones Kakashi reads,” she said with a laugh in her voice. After a moment, she continued as she began to twist into a more comfortable position on Naruto’s lap, his hand falling onto her waist, the other rising up to card through Hinata’s soft hair. “I hope Keiko and Touya end up together. Touya flirts with her and pretends he doesn’t feel the way he does, but he cares for her deeply, and I think Keiko feels the same. How’s the poetry?” 

Naruto picked the book back up and opened it to the page he had been reading. “I don’t really  _ get _ a lot of it, but it’s all beautiful. I like this one- My Love Within the Moon. It’s so sad.” After a second, he added, “I like how you draw in your books.” It was something he had never seen anyone do before. Iruka would write notes in the margins of some books, Shikamaru would press sticky notes to pages, Sakura would stick flowers in between pages, but Hinata would draw. Sometimes, Naruto would catch her setting aside Jiraiya’s book and pick up a sketchbook to draw out a scene or a character or something silly. She would rip out the page, carefully fold it, and leave it in between the pages it was meant for. Naruto couldn’t wait to read the book after her, to see all her drawings in between the pages.

A soft breath left Hinata’s mouth and she said, “I never showed anyone my art until you. It makes me happy to know you like it.” She turned her head slightly, and she was so close, her breath danced along his face and her bright colorless eyes gazed at him and Naruto watched as her lips parted slightly and his heart was in his throat, threatening to rise up and up and- 

There was a knock that startled them both, Naruto half rising with his wife falling off his lap as he heard a call. “Hey, anyone home?” Shikamaru’s voice was muffled from the front door, and Naruto quickly made his way to let his friend in. As he slid open the door, he saw that Shikamaru was not alone- in his arms was little Mirai, her dark hair had several little colored hair clips that threatened to slip off her head and she was sound asleep. “Hey. Sorry this is last minute, but I got called for a mission. Do you mind watching Mirai?”

Naruto immediately reached out and took hold of the girl, accepting her overnight bag full of clothes and toys and Shikamaru slung her favorite little blanket around Naruto’s neck. “Of course, man. Kurenai’s out for the rest of the week, right?” Hinata worked part time at the mission desk, and they were fine with having young children around as long as paperwork got sorted correctly at the end of the day, and Naruto could bug off missions for a few days and even take her along with him as he discussed the plans for the orphanage and the school.

“Yeah, though I should be back before Kurenai does.” Shikamaru leaned forward and pressed a kiss to the back of his goddaughter's head. “Thanks Naruto. Man, this mission’s gonna be a drag,” He said with a smile on his face that caused Naruto to laugh quietly. “Bye Naruto, Hinata.” Shikamaru raised up his hand as he turned his around.

“Bye bye.” Hinata softly replied from next to Naruto as they watched Shikamaru flicker away with a wind of dust and leaves that fluttered along the December air. Hinata reached out a hand to unclip the hair clips from Mirai’s hair, gently guiding the child’s unruly curls as she pulled them out. “What should we make for dinner?”

“Mirai likes those meat pies you make,” Naruto thought out loud as they walked back into the living room, setting Mirai down onto the couch as Hinata grabbed one of the blankets they had yet to put away to set on the little girl. “Or, maybe something simple, like fried rice.” He helped tuck the blanket around Mirai and watched as Hinata hummed thoughtfully as she set aside Mirai’s hairclips.

“Fried rice sounds good. Would you like to help me?” Her hand moved to push back at her hair, and without much thought, Naruto picked up one of the hairclips and tucked it along her hairline, pulling back her long hair. The little gold sun earrings were visible with her hair pushed back. 

Naruto took a step back and smiled at her as he stuffed his hands in his sweats pockets, “I’d love to help.” Together, they moved the radio back into the kitchen and got to work to make dinner. As Naruto stirred the fried rice, he watched as Hinata took graceful, small steps, her hips swaying along to the music, the long, flowy kimono she wore swishing about and all he could do was grin as he watched her. She was the sun, but the sun was a star, and stars were magnetic and beautiful and once someone's eyes landed on them, it was too difficult to look away, to pull out of that stars- the suns- little orbit. Naruto grinned down as he pulled the fried rice off the stove and moved to grab bowls for him and his wife and their goddaughter. 

Pieces of orange were on Mirai’s chin, but the little girl didn’t seem to mind as she absently chewed on the piece of fruit. Naruto laughed as he bit into his own orange slice. Across the table, Iruka was smiling as he shifted through the pages of paperwork they were working through together, along with Asama Kaori, a kunoichi a few years older than Naruto who studied children’s development and had been advocating for a better childcare and school system for quite a few years. 

“Do you think Hokage-sama will really allow a change in graduation age?” Kaori asked as she broke apart her orange, slice by slice, her dark blue hair falling across her forehead as she concentrated. “As much as I respect the man, and acknowledge your relationship with him Iruka-sensei, Hokage-sama isn’t exactly the type to coddle children.”

It was true- Naruto was pretty sure Kakashi didn’t actually like any of Team 7 as people until they were in their late teens and actually capable of themselves and not actively finding ways to make his life a little chaotic. Sure, he had called them cute, but Naruto knew he didn’t quite have the patience to deal with helping children learn as others would have liked from him. There was nothing wrong with that, he just wasn’t a kid person- it was more annoying than anything, especially at the time when he was Naruto’s jounin-sensei.

Iruka sighed, “Well, luckily I live with the man and use my time to talk all this out with him. Honestly, he’ll relent soon. He knows that twelve year olds aren’t as ready for missions as they all like to think. Kakashi just- he doesn’t want to feel like his own life was wasted.”

“The adults before us usually disappoint,” Naruto said quietly as he wiped at Mirai’s mouth, the little girl whining and attempting to lean away from his hand as he did so, “but, some walk along and treat children as they are- children. I think it’s time we did right by all of our children in Konoha.” He thought of the few adults he trusted growing up- Teuchi, Iruka, Kakashi, Tsunade, Jiraiya. He looked at little Mirai, who was back to rubbing orange around her mouth and grinning toothily at him, and he didn’t want her life to end up on the same path as most others he knew.

Kaori smiled and held up a slice of orange, as though making a toast, and little Mirai held up her own half eaten slice to press against Kaori’s. “Well said Naruto-kun! May our projects bear fruit as wonderful as these oranges! Right Mirai-chan?”

“Right!” Mirai grinned as she bit into her orange, grinning widely at them all. 

They laughed and continued to work out their ideas for their projects- the academy, the orphanage, and the preschool. They were all in agreement about recruiting teachers, shinobi and civilians alike, and that they would have better luck settling the issue once Sasuke came back to the village. Sasuke had been gone for nearly a year, traveling about while learning about different villages cultures, training, and trying to find any person willing to come to the Hidden Leaf village to run an orphanage in what had once been the Uchiha compound. From his letters, he had yet to be successful, but he made it sound as though he was coming back to Konoha sooner than later. Naruto wondered, if push came to shove, if Sasuke would settle and run the orphanage himself. The thought made Naruto smirk- no, Sasuke was even more awkward and useless with children than Kakashi.

Naruto and Mirai left the meeting soon after, the small girl holding two of his fingers and talking about this and that in a mumbling way he only half understood, but was responsive to anyways, nodding along seriously and answering her whenever she looked up at him with her wide brown eyes. After a while of walking through the village, Mirai tugged at his sleeves and he picked her up into his arms, carrying her the rest of the way home. 

“Want to help me make some nabe Mirai-chan?” Naruto asked as he opened the door to the house. “I’m home!” He called out as they stepped inside, despite knowing that Hinata had gone to work a few hours at the mission desk. He set down Mirai and they both toed off their shoes. “Want to make nabe?” He asked again as he watched the young girl straighten out their shoes, her little pink shoes so small next to his. 

Mirai pursed her lips and looked around before nodding her head, “Yes!”

As Naruto set to work preparing the pot and chopping the vegetables, Mirai watched in mild fascination, asking about what he was adding into the pot. After Naruto chopped up the carrots, he handed Mirai a flower-shaped cookie cutter that Hinata often used while making meals, and the girl happily pressed it to the pieces of carrots, pressing down on them one by one and creating a small pile as Naruto prepared the ground chicken. After he finished mixing the chicken with green onion and some ginger, he began to make small meatballs, with Mirai’s help soon after she finished with her flower-shaped carrots. Together, they dropped the meatballs into the hotpot, one by one, and added pork and vegetables- Mirai had taken a liking to the enoki mushrooms, pretending the stalks were a little family, before reluctantly dropping them into the pot as well. 

“And then we’ll add the harusame a few minutes before we eat!” Naruto explained as he placed the top of the hotpot back in place and guided Mirai towards the sink to wash her hands. He grabbed the step stool they kept there, opened it, and kept a hand on her back as he watched her wash her hands. “Did you have fun cooking with me Mirai-chan?”

“Mmm-hmm.” Mirai hummed as she watched the bubbly soap drain down the sink. After a few minutes, they moved into the living room, where Naruto switched on the television and put on a film that had been in Mirai’s bag when Shikamaru dropped her off. It was something about a magical princess trying to find her pet in a magical forest that Naruto recognized as being on the edge of the land of fire. Naruto left her in front of the television to stick the harusame into the hotpot, the translucent noodles floating about, picking out a piece of cabbage to chew on as he moved back into the living room to watch the film with Mirai, who was half watching, half playing with two stuffed animals on the couch cushion. 

It wasn’t long that they moved into the kitchen to share the nabe, Naruto carefully serving them both, setting aside a bowl for when Hinata came home. Mirai sat next to Naruto, excitedly talking about her flower-shaped carrots and carefully chewing on them, when they heard, “I’m home!” 

“Welcome home!” Naruto yelled back with a grin, Mirai chiming his words after him like a small echo. Hinata strolled into the room, her hands held in front of her, her long hair slightly mused from the winter wind. She smiled at them, warm and bright, and sat across from them, serving herself a bowl of the nabe. “This looks amazing,” she grinned at them happily as she grabbed her chopsticks. “Thank you for the food!” 

“I- I made the flowers! See Hina!” Mirai pointed out, watching as her godmother picked up a piece of carrot, examining it closely before sticking it into her mouth, chewing slowly, slowly, slowly, with a small smile on her face that made the little girl grin wide and bounce in place on the small cushion she sat on. 

“What wonderful flowers Mirai-chan. You two made such an amazing meal, I may accidently eat the whole pot!” Hinata said with a soft laugh that warmed Naruto’s chest. “How was your day with Naruto? Did you do anything fun?” 

Naruto helped prompt little Mirai to remember the day they shared, and she happily talked about seeing Iruka and eating oranges and cutting carrots into flowers and about the cutest flower that was actually a princess who sang about dirt and the sun. Naruto glanced away from Mirai and met Hinata’s sparkling opalescent eyes, a knowing smile on her face, and Naruto couldn’t help but grin right back and shrug his shoulders. 

The white powdered sugar lay delicately along the top of the cheesecake he had gotten up early to bake. The sun had yet to rise, but Naruto didn’t care much as he admired what he had made, all by himself. Cooking and baking had never been something he was very good at, he hadn't learned to make anything other than cup ramen until he was thirteen when Jiraiya finally got fed up and had them cook a meal together. 

Naruto smiled as he remembered the fond memory, how his sensei pressed a knife into his hand and helped him cut along vegetables, how he had nearly chopped off his own finger, scaring Jiraiya enough to simply have Naruto sit at the table watching him prepare the meal as Naruto pressed a towel to his rapidly healing finger.

It had taken him a few years, but after the war, learning how to cook had been cathartic, even for the time it had been slow going with the one arm. That was possibly why he preferred to make simple, quick meals, but it was still nice to go out of his way with a recipe and take his time  _ trying _ . He moved the cheesecake from the stovetop and over onto the ornate plate set on the chabudai that Naruto was half sure had been gifted to them by some person or another who had been just too glad to hear that Uzumaki Naruto had gotten married.

He grabbed the present he had carefully wrapped in old newspaper and then the cute little wrapping paper with a sunflower design that Hinata had brought from her family home, and set it next to the cake. After a second, he smiled to himself, glanced out the window at the slowly rising sun, and began to make a quick breakfast of eggs, toast, and bacon. He was just taking the toast out of the oven when he heard the soft footsteps of Hinata. Her head poked into the kitchen, a small smile on her face as she wiped the sleep from her eyes.

“Good morning.” 

“Happy birthday,” Naruto replied with a grin as he grabbed their plates and set them at the chabudai. Hinata’s face seemed to glow pink- her cheeks and ears flushed as she took in the cake and the present on the table- and her smile morphed into a grin that showed her teeth. She sat across from Naruto and carefully spread jam onto her toast.

“When did you make this?” She pointed towards the cake. A small glob of jam had settled onto her pale cheek, and Naruto carefully reached over to wipe it away with his thumb, watching as her cheeks once again flushed pink.

“I made it early this morning. I know everyone’s coming over later to celebrate, and I thought, you know, it’d be nice to have a cake that’s just for us.” He shrugged his shoulders and scratched at the back of his neck before moving to stuff his face with some eggs and bacon. 

“It looks really good,” Hinata said, covering her mouth as she chewed her breakfast, her eyes on the rounded, fluffy cheesecake. “I’m excited to eat it, I’ve always wanted to have one like this, but have never gotten one!” 

Naruto grinned and shrugged his shoulders nonchalantly, “I know.”

“You know?”

“I know.”

His wife snorted into her hand and rolled her eyes, continuing to eat her breakfast as she eyed the cheesecake set aside. When they both finished, Naruto grabbed their plates and set them in the sink, grabbing two clean ones and a knife to cut the cake along with their camara. Hinata smiled at him as she realized he began to take pictures of her, Naruto catching photos as she cut into the cake and as she bit into it, a warm, happy smile spreading on her face as she wiggled her shoulders and excitedly moved her head from side to side as she went in for another bite. 

“This is so good. Thank you Naruto.” 

“No problem! Plus, now you get to brag about having an awesome, handsome husband who cooks real good!” Naruto laughed as he cut his own piece and placed it on his own plate, stuffing a large piece into his mouth before pushing forward the wrapped present still on the table. “Oh, here, open up your present!” 

One thing he liked about Hinata was that she was the type of person who carefully opened up presents, she would find where the tape was and press her finger underneath and ran her finger along to raise up the wrapping paper. He had asked her about it, once, and she had simply smiled at him and replied, “Well, I feel bad, ripping up something someone worked so hard on.” It was ridiculously sweet; she was ridiculously sweet. So, Naruto sat, eating his slice of cake while watching Hinata carefully open up her gift. It took a few minutes, but when she finally opened the box to reveal a silver box. The design was intricate on top, while the bottom and sides was sleek. The top was beautiful, with a woman with flowing hair laying against a crescent moon, her hands among various little stars.

“Oh my goodness,” Hinata whispered as her fingertips edged along the design, “this is- beautiful. Where did you get this?”

Naruto shrugged his shoulders, “I went on this mission not too long ago and saw this in a shop of a small village we passed through. It’s pretty, right? I saw it and knew I had to get it for you.” His hand found its way to the back of his neck, his fingers wrapping his growing hair around as he watched Hinata’s awe filled face. “You should open it,” he leaned forward with a grin.

Hinata’s made a face at him- her nose scrunched up and her eyes closed and all Naruto wanted to do was reach over and tug at the lock of hair that was rumpled from sleep so he did just that, which only caused her to playfully stick her tongue out at him before she moved to open up the box. Her pale hands took out the necklace that Naruto had placed into the box, the silver chain twisting around as she held it between her fingers. It was nothing remarkable, a simple silver chain with a twisting little cage around a pink and purple glittering rock Naruto had found while on a mission about a year ago. The moment he saw it, he had known he would give it to Hinata. It had taken a while for him to find someone willing to turn it into a necklace, but Naruto had it ready for months, ready to give to Hinata for her birthday. 

“Wow, it’s lovely,” Hinata’s smile was barely there, but the softness in her eyes and the way she watched the rock shine as she twisted it about told Naruto everything he needed to know. He grinned and shrugged his shoulders, and relished in the happiness that curled about throughout his stomach. 

The piece of cake sat precariously on Naruto’s knee as his wife blinked slowly at Ino, whose hand was outstretched with a beer bottle, a grin on her face. In all honesty, Naruto had thought most people  _ knew _ . It wasn’t like it was a secret anymore. Everyone- from shinobi to civilians to merchants who passed through the village- seemed fond of gossiping about Naruto, and his fast marriage had been in the center of talk for weeks. Their families knew. Old lady Kinoko knew. Some shopkeepers from here and there knew. Yet- here Ino was, offering Hinata alcohol like she hadn’t a clue. 

Hinata’s hand delicately grabbed the beer bottle and pressed it into Naruto’s hand before she picked up her plate of cake from his knee. Naruto, quickly took a swig from the bottle, watching as Ino’s features twisted into confusion. And- maybe Naruto could be a bit harsh about Ino’s participation in gossip. She had always loved Hinata, would become overly affectionate whenever she drank too much and hug Hinata close and talk about how she wanted to keep everything bad away from her. Perhaps she had heard the gossip and didn’t believe it since it wasn’t from Hinata herself. 

“I’m pregnant,” Hinata said as she stuffed a frosting-filled piece of cake into her mouth. Naruto brought the beer back up to his mouth, threw his head back, and chugged, drowning out the excited, loud, surprised noises their friends made. “I- we weren’t exactly  _ hiding  _ the fact, but I didn’t want to really bring it up to people.”

“Do you know what you’re having?” Shikamaru asked with a small smile as he reached over to close Ino’s gaping mouth, his hand resting under her chin for a moment until she came back to herself and slapped him away. His reaction was what Naruto should have expected. Ever since Mirai was born it had come to light that Shikamaru  _ liked  _ children and his whole spiel about living a mediocre life with a wife and kids wasn’t just him spouting nonsense.

He actually wanted that life. He had spent many lazy afternoons with Naruto, the two of them sharing a cigarette and gazing up at the clouds in the sky, talking about how he was sure that Temari was going to be the one he settled down with. “She’s not exactly the kind of woman I thought I would love, but I do,” Shikamaru had said with a shrug as though the words didn’t mean  _ everything _ , as though his cheeks weren’t flushed pink. Naruto had laughed, but hadn’t teased him too bad about it, happy to see the glint of motivation that shone in his eyes. 

Naruto grinned and wrapped an arm around Hinata, who answered with her own smile, “A girl.” Shikamaru grinned and raised his beer bottle in a silent toast. Hinata turned back to Ino, “I’m sorry I haven’t said anything. It’s just been-”

Ino gave Hinata a smile and reached over to grasp Hinata’s hands in hers. She leaned forward and whispered something in Hinata’s ear before moving back, grabbing her own beer, and saying something that Naruto didn’t actually hear because he was occupied watching how Hinata’s eyes were gleaming as she laughed at whatever Ino said to them all. The party moved on, and Hinata turned her head, her eyes meeting Naruto’s. Her smile was small and warm and her pale hand reached out. Naruto took it in his- her hand was so delicate, yet full of calluses and years of use all the same, that Naruto couldn’t help but grin back and set his chin onto her shoulder. She smelled like lemons and lavender; she smelled of something that felt so much like home it made his throat tightened as he sat so close to her, listening to their friends talk and joke and as Hinata ate her cake and giggled, sending little shock wave through Naruto as her shoulders moved up and down. This was home. 

Hinata was home.

She was as much of his home as Iruka and Kakashi and Sakura and, despite everything that they had been through, Sasuke. Hinata meant so much to him it made his chest ache and his heart, usually so steady in the face of life, to beat a little faster in his chest with every little and every big thing she did. Hinata was home, and as he looked around at her and their friends, celebrating her birthday, their friends underlying excitement of the prospect of a baby static in their breaths as they spoke and ate cake, Naruto couldn’t help the grin that spread on his face as he joined in a conversation with Lee and Kiba.

When the party ended and their friends left, Naruto turned to Hinata and wrapped his arms around her shoulders, letting his chin drop on top of her head. Hinata giggled, that same little giggle that made his body shiver and his toes curl, as she reached up to place her hands onto his. “Happy birthday Hinata-chan!” He said cheerily, his body light, so light he could float up in the sky, a nice tipsiness on his tongue. 

Hinata laughed and turned slightly so she could face him. “You’re drunk aren’t you?”

Naruto stuck his tongue out at her and relished in her laughter. “Just a little tipsy! Just a bit!” Together, with Naruto’s arm thrown over her shoulder, they began to walk down the hallway, Naruto’s movements a little loose and unsteady as they walked along. “Did you have a nice time today Hina-chan?” 

A small blush, pink and adorable, spread across her cheeks and stained the tips of her ears. Hinata hummed and nodded her head before taking a moment to speak. “Y-yes. It was nice seeing all of our friends. I didn’t expect it to go exactly how it did, but it went well. I know Ino is still a little upset… but she’s happy. Apparently- well- apparently her and Sakura are trying to get pregnant. It hasn’t happened yet, but she said that it made her happy to know that their child would have a friend once theirs was ready to come.”

“A baby! Ino and Sakura! They deserve it, ya know?” Naruto grinned as he thought about Sakura and Ino having a little baby- they had really grown from the girls who had fought with each other as romantic rivals and knowing how happy they were together made him so happy for his friends. It had been so hard for Sakura when she had admitted to Naruto the feelings she had for Ino- and, well, just women in general- and to see her happily hold her girlfriend’s hand in public even though they received harsh words and Sakura had practically been disowned by her parents. They would be such great mother's. Just like Hinata. “You’re my best friend, ya know? It makes me so happy when you’re happy.”

“I thought Sasuke and Shikamaru were your best friends.” Hinata said with raised eyebrows as they found themselves in front of the door to Hinata’s room. Their rooms were close to each other, but far enough that they had privacy from one another when they needed it. Naruto had only stepped into her room once to give her a bucket when she was still getting a bit sick, but had left her room as her own since that moment. 

Naruto made a noise of thought and shrugged his shoulders. “Yeah, they’re cool, but you’re different.” Hinata pressed her back against her door and gave him a smile, her cheeks flushed, her hair a little messy from the long night. Naruto couldn’t help but think she was so pretty, so beautiful, so wonderful, he just grinned at her and whispered, quiet for the sake of being quiet, “Good night Hinata. Sleep well.”

“Good night.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Okayyyyy we're catching up to where I am still writing so updates will def be coming slower. I had such writers block with the end of this chapter but I think it's alright and sets up for what I want next (hint: Sasuke lol). Also I'm not one for poetry so hope that wasn't too horrible :)
> 
> Leave a comment, a kudos, or check out some of my other fics love you guys <3
> 
> ALSO sorry but anon comments cannot be allowed due to the large amount of hate that has flooded my inbox. If you are an anon user who enjoys this story I'm sorry I wish I could hear your thoughts <3


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